Villains
by Groudon202
Summary: Mojo Jojo, once Townsville's greatest villain, doesn't have much longer to live. When one of his archenemies shows up, seriously asking for training in the ways of villainy, he finds himself accepting it. Together, the unlikely duo must fight against all odds to prove themselves against a world that deems those who are different as "freaks." On Temporary Hiatus.
1. Five Past Ten

**VILLAINS**

FIVE PAST TEN

_It has been many, many years since I have been affected by Chemical X. 16 and a bit, actually. While I was only technically 17, having been a baby chimpanzee on that faithful day, my aging speed had been tripled from it, so I had aged 48 years in the space of 16 human years. As I have almost elapsed what, according to several doctors, bore signs to my species' maximum age limit (50, and that was in captivity) I know my time is coming and that I won't have much more. 10 hours at most, probably more like eight. And I know I don't want to spend it mourning over my imminent removal from this world._

_So I have made a decision. While I wait for a certain person very close to me to return from his duties, I will reminisce over all the important details of my life. From Chemical X to now. And I know that none of it was in vain. For while I myself have not been able to achieve world domination, I have left behind someone who will, and who is already well into said task._

_My son, Jojo Junior._

_Formerly Buttercup Utonium._

* * *

><p>I'm assuming you know of the origin of the Powerpuff Girls. "Sugar, spice and everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create the Perfect Little Girl. But Professor Utonium accidentally added an extra ingredient to the concoction – Chemical X. Thus, the Powerpuff Girls were born! Using their ultra superpowers, Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup have dedicated their lives to fighting crime and the forces of evil!"<p>

Mostly true. The only mistake in that nutshell description was that it wasn't Utonium who added C-X (even for me, repeating the word Chemical that many times in a sentence becomes boring. Imagine that!). It was me, Mojo Jojo. Or as I was known then, Jojo. I cannot actually remember the events transpiring around that, other than after knocking in the C-X, I peered dangerously close to the concoction. Enough for it to affect me when it exploded.

After I woke up, I had changed completely. While previously, I was a bog-standard one year-old chimpanzee, now I looked much older. My skin was a sickly green, and my body hair was much thicker. My skin felt mutated, and most importantly, my scientifically mutated brain stuck out of the top of my head. Now, this seemed a curse at first, but later it became a blessing.

Once I had come to grips enough to find a grip on the ground, I stood up. Being in the darkness in a secluded corner, I was not noticed as I observed what was happening in front of me. Utonium was sitting on the ground, looking up happily at three fast moving figures above his head. Ordinarily, I would have paid particular interest to the fact that they were flying, or that they left colored trails behind them. But I was more drawn to the figures themselves. All looking about five, all with Mary Janes, and simple dresses colored black and another color, with this other color varying between each one

The first had long fiery red hair, with a horn-shaped red bow on top of her head. Her eyes were pink, as was the other color of her dress. While I did not learn their names until much later, I was not surprised upon learning that she had been named Blossom.

The second had blond hair in pigtails. Her eyes were blue, same as her dress' second color. While I only found out her name to be Bubbles later, I could already tell that she was the most innocent of the three, at least at first glance.

The third and final one was the most curious. Physically, she wasn't a big variation on the other two, having short black hair ending in two short flips, with her eyes and dress primarily green. It was what was on the inside that made a difference. While I could not make out much else, there was something about her that seemed different. Although they were all born as girls, in terms of personality, if Blossom was half-girl half-boy, and Bubbles was a girl without question, then this one, Buttercup, was a boy on the inside.

I'm getting off the point. As I stood there, watching, I felt strangely lonely. Something inside me swelled up. I longed for a family, but I knew I was not going to get it here. While I later turned out to be somewhat mistaken regarding that decision, it was correct about three of the four individuals there.

Once they were gone, I had snuck out and taken to the streets. This part of the story is dull, other than the fact that I concocted a plan for revenge against humanity, but even that original plan is minuscule compared to what happened more recently in my life. After all, these events did transpire 16 years ago.

Despite using some makeshift clothes I found in the dumpster, along with a paper bag to cover my head and a torn scarf wrapped around my neck that trailed behind me a little, I felt really cold as I lay in one of many cardboard boxes located near a mall. It was night time, and the rain had started only seconds ago. I was perfectly ready to lie down to sleep, when I heard several screams nearby.

Against my better judgment at the time, I made my way out into the dripping water from the sky. Hoisting my way onto a low roof on the side of the mall, I made my way to the opposite edge. Down below were the three girls, surrounded by four pale green-skinned teenage hooligans that called themselves the Gangreen Gang. There was a tall male in a jacket with shades; a skinny tank-topped one with a small brown had tipped backwards, a caveman-like colossus with red hair that covered his eye, and a small Hispanic midget even shorter then me. As the girls stood there in fear, the fifth member, a grotesque hunchback, landed a few feet away from them. His raspberry blowing made all three girls yell in fear.

Knowing the girls would make my plan that much easier, I seized a nearby trashcan lid. I took aim just as the hunchback, Grubber, drew close to them. Putting as much power into it as I could, I let it go. First it knocked Grubber clean onto the ground, putting surprise into the rest of the gang before it bounced off of a wall and took Snake out. Then it rebounded off several boxes, hitting Big Billy straight in the head. The height that it was at sent it spiraling down towards Ace, clubbing him to the ground. It sprang off the deserted truck straight at Arturo, hitting the railing behind him and ramming him onto the ground by his head.

Finally, the lid was coming towards the girls, but it thankfully bounced off of the ground, soaring over them back towards me. I caught it cleanly from the air, lowering my arm down. Only a second passed before lightning flashed, illuminating my eyes and pointed ears. Blossom made to say thanks, but I took off running back towards my hideout box. I could hear them following me, as that was my plan, but I still made it priority to get out of the rain, and to hide my physical looks.

I watched as they drew closer, looking around curiously. It took only a small period of time before they noticed me, and came up, even though they could not make me out. Blossom asked me what my name was, saying hers. Buttercup and Bubbles stated theirs too. I told them to go away, to not look at me. To be fair, at the time, I had only being affected by the C-X three days previously. Blossom said that they only wanted to thank me, and Buttercup remarked how cool the thing with the trashcan lid was, further supported by Bubbles. What stood out was Buttercup's attitude. It was hard to believe at the time that we would ever work together...

"No please," I moaned back, the rain coming down all around them, "I dare not listen. For I have been lashed by harsh tongues for too long! Alas, my little ones, I did not rock. For I, Jojo am... a monster." Lightning illuminated my face and pink eyes again, further heightening the tension of the scene. Blossom passed it off, saying I was no monster, that monsters were evil. At the time, I did not truly understand the concept of evil, so I did not feel evil at all. Buttercup stated anyone who did what I had just done couldn't be evil, followed by Bubbles saying that I was just dirty.

"Please, you're just trying to make me feel better," I groaned again. "But my pain is not for you to understand. Besides how could you? For you are pure and innocent, and most certainly loved." They briefly glanced at each other, and I could tell that they did not feel loved then. While Blossom and Bubbles certainly did later, it was questionable whether Buttercup did for the next ten years. "How could you know what it is to be cast out into a world that only offers misery? How could you know what it's like for people to fear and despise you for the very things that make you special?" They looked down at their feet, clearly feeling just the way that I did at the time. "Because you don't fit in. Because you are... a freak!" I took that opportunity to reveal myself to them, whipping the bag off of my repulsive head. They stared at me for several seconds, looking very disgruntled, before Blossom said they were freaks too, and they rose up into the air.

"What amazing powers!" I remarked. Even though I had already seen them before, they were still quite something to behold. Blossom responded by saying they were terrible. "I bet everyone hates them." Buttercup roughly agreed with this statement. "And they hate you too." Bubbles sadly confirmed this. I turned away from them, my lip trembling from the same reasons.

"I am in the same boat," I mumbled, wiping away a tear as I pointed at my extending head. "This brain is full of brilliant ideas." I sniffled, both from the cold and from my story. "But will anyone listen? No. Nothing in this gray matters. So what's the point?" I slopped my way back into the box, shaking rain off my back as I did so. Almost instantly, I heard them floating back down onto the lower rim of the box, facing my behind. Bubbles said something about people being mad because they didn't understand, while Blossom said if they were given time, they would understand my specialness. But it was Buttercup's statement that made the difference.

"Yeah," she said, "you just gotta believe in yourself." I think that was what solidified it for me. What Blossom and Bubbles said didn't yield fruit for me, but Buttercup's sentence did. I think it was then that I sensed something different in her. Ever since then, whenever the Powerpuff Girls associated with me, it was usually Blossom who seemed to be the one that even talked to me at all, with Bubbles sometimes, and Buttercup rarely. Perhaps that was why people were surprised when we went together. Not me. The other two meant nothing from that day forward. But she did. Or should I say he, since nothing about Buttercup was female except for her sexual organs.

The directly proceeding events were rather simple. I said that my greatest plan was the Help-The-Town-And-Make-It-A-Better-Place Machine. I overrode their hesitation and took them under my wing to make it. Of course I had no intention to make anything of the sort, but there was no need to tell them that. Once it was complete, an observatory atop the volcano in the middle of Townsville Central Park, I gave them a special surprise; a trip to the zoo. While we were there, I used a special camera to implant tiny transporting devices on all the monkeys in the Primate Plaza section of the zoo.

Following the girls' departure later that day, saying that tomorrow was the day that everything would fall into place, I took command of the main machine. Teleporting all the monkeys there, I injected them with quantities of C-X, turning them smart just like myself. I was under the impression that they were my family. I was wrong.

Next morning, after donning one of many new suits the girls had helped me make, consisting of a blue uniform, white boots and gloves, a purple cape, special belt and a glass helmet for my protruding brain, I woke up the monkeys. Letting them out of their cages, I let them out of the observatory and upon Townsville. While they tormented the civilians, I made my way to Townsville Hall, and just as the girls arrived with Utonium, I proclaimed that I couldn't have done it without them. Naturally, the civilians hated them more than ever. Even Utonium distrusted them at that point. Cursed and dejected, they blasted off into space.

Although I was certain that I had won, all the monkeys then proclaimed themselves to be the true ruler. Ojo Tango, Rocko Socko, Baboon Kaboom, the Go-Go Patrol, Hota Wota, Cha-Ching, Cha-Ching, the Doot Da Doot Da Doot Doos, Hacha Chacha, Blah-Blah Blah-Blah, Killa Drilla, Bonzo Bango, Rolo Ovo, Cruncha Muncha, Wacko Smacko, Pappy Wappy, and so many more that I do not even remember the names of all of them. I decided to go ahead and choke Utonium, seeing as he was one of the biggest banes of my existence. I might have been doing it for ever until a beaten-up Cha-Ching landed in front of us. Realizing the girls had returned and found out just what their powers could really do, and that they would find me through all the other monkeys, I retreated to my observatory with Utonium as hostage.

When the girls finally caught up, I threatened to break his neck, allowing me to pump what was left of the C-X into myself. Growing into a giant, I tried to restate power, but the Girls engaged in battle with me. I almost won, but they eventually triumphed over me, proclaiming that I alone was the true monster that day. Falling on some Antidote X, I returned to normal size, although I retained the effects of the first batch.

And thus, the rivalry between the Powerpuff Girls and myself was born.

* * *

><p>Everyone knows how our battles went for perhaps the first five or so years. Robo Jojo this, cunning trick that. I grew tired of the repetitive outcomes of our encounters. Every time was always the same, ending in defeat, demise or some other form of punishment!<p>

As the years passed, though, I began to notice a certain change in the girls. While Blossom's and Bubbles' personalities merely grew from what they previously were, Buttercup began to change. She seemed more abrupt, angered and easily provoked. This was most often demonstrated whenever she and Blossom broke into a fight, which was usually fixed by Bubbles. Although I tried to take advantage of this numerous times, they always emerged victorious in the end. Even so, it curiously intrigued me. Were the Powerpuffs growing further apart? Was Buttercup becoming a grouch? I also noticed how, by age 10, she did not seem as popular among the townspeople as the other two.

It was at that point that I began to speculate about my relation to them. Since they were created from ingredients, Utonium was not their biological father. But since I was the one who added the C-X, I suppose that I was the closest thing to Buttercup's biological father. It was just a theory, nothing more, but it was in my mind every day since then. At first I was alarmed that we could possibly be connected, but I grew more relaxed with it over time.

Time, however, was not on my side. By then I was reaching middle-life. My skin was starting to wrinkle, I was no longer as physically adept in martial arts, and flecks of white and gray started appearing in my body hair. Eventually, after several humiliating defeats, I was forced to semi-retire from villainy. Well, only physically. I usually did it with machines and other technology that I controlled from afar. As such, I rarely saw the girls in person from that day forth. I only saw them via telescope.

Only days after this, though, odd events transpired. One morning, after the boy doing the paper round had dropped the newspaper on my doorstep, I noticed a rather interesting article on the front page of the paper.

"POWERPUFF GIRL BUTTERCUP MAIMED IN ROBBERY ATTEMPT"

Sitting down on the couch, I read it quickly. From a press statement by witnesses, and some answered questions from Blossom and Bubbles, I got the gist of the story. They had been stopping some robbers at the Townsville Museum of Rare Artifacts when two crooks splattered Buttercup with some highly corrosive acid. Blossom had left to stop the crooks, leaving Buttercup in pain and agony for several minutes before Bubbles helped her with some water.

"'She appeared in real pain, like a knife was cutting her,' said Bubbles when asked for comments. 'The Professor's still taking care of her.'

'Well, obviously busting the bad guys came first,' admitted a dejected Blossom shortly after. 'But we'll do whatever we can to make Buttercup feel better.'

I almost snorted at this. Even though I did not really care much, I considered it really selfish of Blossom to put some jewels ahead of her own sister. These were very interesting events indeed...

The next time a monster attacked Townsville, I watched the fight through my telescope. It was a rather interesting battle, I will say. Unlike previous similar occasions, the Powerpuff Girls did not cooperate with each other completely. Well, Blossom and Bubbles worked together, & Buttercup worked with Bubbles, but neither Blossom nor Buttercup even acknowledged the presence of each other, instead opting to do it on their own. Because of this, by the time the monster was defeated and had retreated to Monster Isle, more damage had been caused than usual. Afterwards, Buttercup soared away, Bubbles following her. Blossom went off in the direction of their home.

I deactivated the telescope and sat down in the couch in the main room of the observatory, thinking. Although I tried to focus on Buttercup while the fight was going on, I did not manage to get a clear glance of her. I did notice, though, that she wore her hoodie's sleeves fully down on her arms, and that the hood was tightly wrapped around her face. It was almost as though she was trying to shield herself form been seen due to embarrassment from the accident. Or perhaps she had been facially disfigured? Either way, I somehow found myself committing fewer crimes after that. Strange, isn't it?

* * *

><p>That was four and a half years ago. The Powerpuff Girls were fifteen, drawing close to sixteen, and I was no closer to world domination. While I was only biologically 11, I was more like 38 years for a Chimpanzee, which would be the 60's for a human. I hadn't done any evil acts in many weeks, and found myself resorting to wasting my life in front of the television, despite the limited comforts it offered to a mutated simian.<p>

Perhaps my time of villainy was drawing to a close, I thought. If this was truly the way my life was going to end, then I was clearly not going to reach any closer to my goal. Without someone to take over the goal for me, I would never be able to make the world suffer the way I suffered. Without an heir, I was doomed. I had been thinking more and more about Buttercup lately, but it was very slim that she would be slipping towards evil. True, she and her sisters were not the direct kin that they once were, but that didn't mean she was going to become a villain, not by a long stretch. Even though she did seem to possess certain anger that I actually somewhat admired, my theory was still just that, a theory.

That fateful morning, I woke up rather late, having been thinking well into the night. After a rather simple breakfast, toast with egg and two pieces of bacon, I turned on the TV to the local news station, wondering if there would be anything on there that would capture my interest. What actually appeared on the television screen shocked me completely.

"We're just getting word that the high school in which the famed Powerpuff Girls attend, experienced quite a scare when one of the Puffs, the green eyed Buttercup, always known for her awkwardness and dark appearance, began to shout death threats, proceeded to blow up the cafeteria, and lastly claimed responsibility for the murder of a local boy named Mitch Mitchelson! More with Rita Rodriguez live at the scene!" There was footage of a damaged section of the cafeteria, along with several scared students and staff. Even though I would have pondered this really quickly ordinarily, I was interrupted by a knock on the door. Grunting to myself, I heaved my way towards it. Still with the remote in hand, I opened it, expecting it to be a fellow villain from the Villains' Council, probably Fuzzy Lumpkins or the Gangreen Gang, or maybe even one of the Amoeba Boys.

Upon wrenching the door open, however, I was surprised to find myself facing someone I did not recognize. Like most humans, this person was taller than me, as I've been stuck at four and a half feet for seven years. They were wearing a simple jeans and a hoodie, with a backpack. The person's face had scars all around the right eye, with most of it formed into a V shape. At first I thought it was the paper boy, alert to the fact that I had been passing him fake money, but now I was rather uncertain who it was. Something inside me told me it was Buttercup, but I dismissed that notion. On the rare occasions we had seen each other, she had been just as vicious as her sisters towards me, so what was the odds she would be here, even if she had just murdered someone and thrown a temper at the school?

"Who are you?" I finally demanded.

"It's me," said the person, letting the backpack drop onto the steel floor that we were on, just after the long, long stairs. "Buttercup."

* * *

><p><strong>This is quite a departure in style for me. Not only is this my first PG-13 rated fic (well, not yet, but it will be by later chapters), it's also my first fic that isn't canon with my own, wasn't thought up of by me and is also much darker then my usual style of writing (partly as I'm trying to make this feel like it was written by Villain's author). This is, of course, because it's inspired and based off of Villain, one of the best fics in this whole fandom. Go read Yay Ninja Bob's amazing story if you haven't already, although you don't need to to enjoy this, not by a long shot. While I am getting it written rather quickly, I cannot guarantee that the story will get finished. I know there isn't a huge amount of you that like Mojo a lot, but please just give this fic a chance. It won't kill you, right? And anyone who liked Villain should like this a lot too.<br>This is a throwback to the golden days of the Powerpuff Girls fandom (2007-2009). Bar the first half of the chapter, and some added sections in future chapters, this is entirely based off of Yay Ninja Bob's story**.** I hope you get as much out of this story as I did writing it. Please enjoy.  
><strong>


	2. Twenty To Eleven

TWENTY TO ELEVEN

_I glance off to the side from the bed upon which I am lying down on. My tired bag-dragged eyes fall upon my diary. Leaning over slightly, I just about manage to grasp it with one of my frail hands. Placing it on a small part of the bed sheet that my body is currently not occupying, I open it. Flicking through the pages, I finally find what I am looking for._

_October 30__th__ 2006. The day that my son arrived. The day where I took him under my wing for training in villainy._

_The day that everything changed._

* * *

><p>I blinked a few times in mild surprise. As soon as the statement sunk in, it became quite clear that this person was Buttercup. I widened my eyes as though to confirm this. "Ah," I smirked slightly. "You sure did get ugly."<p>

"You got fat," she said indifferently, shrugging. Without hesitation, she pushed her way past me, through the door into my observatory, dragging her backpack alongside her on the ground.

"Hey!" I shouted, following her back inside, slamming the door afterwards. "Just what is the meaning of this? Why are you here? For what purpose to do you invade my home like this? By what reason do you have the authority to intrude on my private lair, uninvited? What exactly is your intention?" I half expected her to yell at me. I wouldn't have been surprised. In truth, I actually was a little glad, but I had to be cautious. It could be a trap.

Instead, she simply turned to face me. "I need a place to stay." To further heighten this point she briefly lifted her backpack off the ground, allowing me to observe that valuable items must be inside it, before she lowered it back down again. "And I need your help."

Crossing my arms, I stared at her straight, trying to evaluate her motives. "What makes you think that I would welcome you into my home? You! Of all people! A Powerpuff Girl! An enemy! A –"

"I ain't a Powerpuff Girl anymore."

I stopped, taken back not by the information but how calm she managed to be, at least thus far. "Oh?"

She nodded. "And not only can you help me, but I can help you too," she said, placing her hands on her hips. She narrowed her eyes, clearly trying to visually communicate what she wanted. As our eyes locked, something seemed to communicate between us. What exactly, I wasn't sure, but I knew that, from that moment, my hopes seemed a little bit higher. I smiled just a little bit, realizing that she too was rather angry at every living thing that considered her inferior. "You see, we both want the same thing, Mojo."

"And what is that?" I carefully inquired, raising an eyebrow. At said words, her grin widened a rather large amount.

"To destroy the Powerpuff Girls, of course."

This news left me totally perplexed. Pacing back and forth, I thought about the situation, rubbing my chin with my gloved hand, while she nervously squirmed a little. On the one hand, this could be my golden opportunity. Working with someone to teach the world a lesson could possibly achieve that goal, despite my aging body. On the other hand...

"How do I know this isn't a trick?" I accused her, pointing a suspicious finger. "How do I know that you are not merely claiming to have left the Powerpuff Girls? How do I know that you have truly turned evil? What proof do you have to show me other than your word?"

"It's not a trick!" The desperation in her voice made me stop pacing and look at her directly. "It's not," she said more calmly. "I – I don't belong in my sisters' world. Hell, I don't believe in their world. I used to when I was a kid. But then..." Here she paused, shaking her head in disbelief. I could tell that she really wanted to impress me. But it was that little moment that really made me sure. "I know I'm meant to be evil!"

I stared at her. "Go on," I said, sitting down on the couch. I flicked off the television and flung the remote over my shoulder. I studied her very closely, and she responded to this by tightening her mean face.

"Anyways, I know that I was mistaken as a kid. Townsville isn't good! Every single soul in this no good city is as terrible as my sister who did _this _to me!" She jabbed a finger at her face. "They're as heartless as my other sister who abandoned me, knowing full well that I ain't got nobody else!" She closed her eyes and fists tightly, straining, clearly trying very hard.

"I want to be a villain," she continued, keeping her eyes clenched shut, vibrating even more. "I already know I have everything it takes to be one! I need to be one! I'm meant to be one! I want to make everyone in this city- no! The entire planet! I want every living thing on Earth to pay for the pain and humiliation my sisters and Townsville put me through. I want everyone and everything to suffer_!_ And I especially want my rotten sisters to suffer the most! I want to have the power to do all that! I need that power!" She finally opened her eyes and looked at me, and I looked back, having watched her every move during her speech. "And... I need your help in order to do all this," she finished quietly.

I was left silent. Scratching my head, I considered. I did believe her, but it would probably be wise to test her potential villainy. Looking over her again, I turned my chin up, putting on a good show. "Nope! Don't believe it!"

"What? You jerk! How could you not –"

"I don't believe it just yet!" I interrupted her, holding up a steady finger.

She stopped dead. "What do ya mean just yet?"

"While your speech was quite impressive and truly touched my blackened little heart, as I stated previously, I cannot just take your word," I said as I stood up and started to make my way to a different room, Buttercup following me. "How do I know if you are speaking the truth? How do I know what you are saying is not false? No! Your words mean nothing! Nothing at all! You'll need to put some action behind that speech of yours before I can allow myself to believe it!"

"I blew up my school and killed a kid!" She whined in desperation. "Didn't you see it on the news?"

I found myself laughing shortly in disbelief. "And what does that have to do with your hatred for the Powerpuff Girls?" Leading her down a short hallway to a certain door, I turned the handle and let her inside. "You use the term 'villain' so lightly. What makes you think you are fit to be called a villain?"

I watched as she took in the room we had let ourselves into. Compared to the kitchen, my bedroom, the main laboratory or the room we had just come from, it was rather empty. All that was there was a long desk with blueprints, papers and utensils on it, along with a wooden chair and a large monitor next to it. Her attention was drawn to the three punching bags neat the window. As they spun around on the chains connected to the ceiling, sprouting pictures of the Powerpuff Girls shortly after my first plan, I saw her recoil slightly at the photograph of her at age 5.

"I use these for... stress purposes," I explained hastily. Before the situation we had got out of hand, I ripped off the photo sporting her, crumbling it up. "Well, no need for this one." I tossed it into a nearby wastepaper bin.

She looked over at the two other bags, cocking her head as she examined them. "What, you want me to hit them?"

"Precisely!" I laughed shortly, glad she was picking up. "But, you may only do so in one swift move! This one move must prove to me, and all of the world, that you indeed despise the Powerpuff Girls just as any true villain would!"

"One move, huh?" She repeated, scratching her head, thinking. I was only waiting a few moments before she rolled up her sleeves to her elbows, and cocked back her fist. What move was this?

"What are you doing? I interrupted. If I didn't know better I'd say she was planning to just do an old-fashioned, ordinary, cliched –

"I'm gonna punch 'em!" she answered shortly.

I slapped my face. Seriously? A punch? What was she thinking? "Ugh! What did I just say to you? Must I always repeat myself? A punch_? _That is the most evil and vile thing you can possibly do? I said a move that will prove that you hate them! A maneuver that is so malevolent it is made of nothing but evil! A punch will not suffice! Focus on your hatred! Focus hard! And unleash all the wickedness within you on those little brats! All of it! Not some of it! Not half! Most definitely nothing less than half! That would be plain and simple failure! No! All of your anger! All of your hatred! Concentrate on it all and unleash it without mercy!" Hopefully that instance of Mo' Linguish would show her what had to be done. If she did it well enough, we could work together. If she didn't... well, I'd worry about that when it happened. Years of failed attempts had taught me to not worry much about small things. Now, it was important that she passed this. I wanted her to stay and this was the final step.

I stood back and watched as she looked at the photo of her sisters. Clenching her fists again, she focused. She wasn't even blinking as she concentrated will all her might, vibrating more with each passing second. Even though I had decided not to interfere again, to let her prove it without any help from me, I almost exclaimed when the strangest thing happened to her fists.

Her fists were glowing a deadly green, a bright jade. They resembled two luminescent balls of green fire that sparked and sizzled with electricity. As she looked down, surprised at them, I was very close to speaking up but I kept quiet. She looked up at her sister's smiles, then down at her hands.

Their smiles, then her hands. Blossom's and Bubbles' smiles, then Buttercup's hands. Their innocent, childish smiles, and her charred, glowing hands. Her hands glowed even more fiercely, she gritted her teeth, and she shook very ferociously as she focused on the smiles. Even I could partly understand her anger at them, though I was confused as to what exactly she was doing.

Finally, all this suspense was unleashed. Just as she opened her palms at the punching bags, they exploded in a blinding burst of cackling green light. This solid block of light bulldozed straight through the bags and right through the thick wall behind it. I could hear her screaming in agony as the light blinded my vision, forcing me to cringe over, shielding my eyes. All I could hear was the eerie sound of this strange beam doing its work and her screams. I had not intended this. She was suffering great pain from whatever this ability was. Why had she decided to use it? I didn't need to know anything about it to know this needed to stop now, but I found myself unable to face this, still shielding my pupils from the glare.

All of a sudden, it stopped. Realizing that her screams had ceased even before that, I opened my eyes and looked up. She was looking down at the punching bags, which were nothing but a few scattered dust fragments. Looking up from this, I saw –

"Wooow!" I exclaimed. Looking at me, she then turned to see what had caught my attention.

"Whoa," she breathed. There was a perfectly cut rectangle in the wall behind where the punching bags once lay, only the top parts of the chains remaining. It was about ninety feet tall and forty feet wide, and the shape was branded outside too. For almost a whole mile, there was just a solid block of destruction. Nothing else. All the buildings in the way were obliterated, leaving their lower sections hanging below like rag dolls. Trees in the path were completely gone, with those at the side missing a huge chuck of their branches and all of their leaves. Dead birds were all over the park outside, which thankfully had been out of the path, as we were hundreds of feet in the air. Even a few people that had been in parts of vanquished buildings were lifeless.

"Why have you never used this power in battle before?" I asked quietly, still blown away by the events that had just happened.

"I never knew I had it," she responded, just as awestruck by the event that had transpired.

"Do your sisters possess this ability?" I asked finally.

She shook her head instantly. "No." We both just continued to take this in. I had never seen anything like this before. No, through all the energy balls, twisters, tornadoes, lasers, rockets, and practically everything both I and the girls had used, none of them came even close to this.

This was good. This was great. No, wait, this was perfect. Now we had something the Powerpuff Girls didn't. Something that gave up an advantage over them, something that gave us better odds, that put us a pedestal above them. I then thought of the girls' special power, which Buttercup had never experienced other then curling her tongue. Blossom was Miss Ice Princess, while Bubbles could speak every known dialect in the universe. But now it had changed. Now she had a... a...

"Death ray," I said with a sly grin. She turned to face me, and then she began to smile too. Now we had something they didn't. She had this, and I had her. A surrogate offspring, of sorts. Shaking off this train of thought, I tugged on the sleeve of her hoodie. "Let's take a closer look, shall we?"

Nodding in agreement, she grabbed the collar of my suit and carefully flew me out into the air, right to the epicenter of the destruction. Once we had arrived, I rushed to a corpse that previously belonged to a middle-aged man. Placing my ear to his chest, I heard nothing. Not a single sound emanated from it. Realizing what this meant, I smiled at her. "He's dead." Noticing a flock of lifeless pigeons, I raced to them and kicked them around like they were mere footballs. "They're dead!" Falling back to my knees, I picked up handfuls of the charred rubble. "Everything is dead!" I exclaimed in delight, letting it fall back onto the ground again. "All that once teemed with life no longer breathes! Everything has expired! Everything has perished!"

She stared at the dead man on the earth. Even though he didn't move at all, he wasn't physically harmed at all. He just lay there with his eyes staring upwards. No action from him whatsoever. She kicked it a little, confirming where he was now. I started to jump up and down in delight –

"Mojo?"

"Hm?" I looked at her, abruptly stopping my celebratory dance.

"When that... light... shot out from me," she began, still examining the dead body. "It was painful, and it drained everything inside me. But then..." She picked up the dead man's arm, held it in what felt like suspended animation before she let it fall back down again. "I suddenly started to feel myself grow stronger. And when it was all over, I felt more rested than I did before it all started." She looked at me. "How can that be?"

I scratched my chin in thought. How indeed... I paced back and forth again, thinking. She caused death, and grew more powerful... That was it! Stopping dead in my tracks, and widening my eyes, I clasped my hands together. "I've got it!"

"What?" she asked intently.

"Don't you see?" I exclaimed, running towards her. "The people!" I rammed the old dude's body. "The animals!" I jabbed in the direction of the birds. "And everything that was alive in some way! You drained the life from them all! You took it as your own, therefore making you stronger! As your enemies grow weaker, you gain strength! As they die, you only collect more muscle! Even if you were to be previously wounded, this death ray will only replenish you, while robbing others of their potency!" Mojo danced again. "The perfect weapon! Mwahahahahaha!"

We gazed at the destruction and carnage all around. I knew then that this was the moment. With this, we could make it much further in our battle for our revenge. Never again would we have to suffer at the hands of others simply because they said we were freaks, or monsters, or anything else for that matter. Now they would be the ones who would suffer.

With this stepping stone... we would be unbeatable.

I suddenly threw me arms around her lower abdomen, as that was as far as I could actually reach, even standing on my tip toes. "Thank you!" I yelled up at the sky, my eyes watering from the moment. "Thank you for sending me this great weapon. Thank you so much!" I just couldn't believe it. Fate had finally given me a fair chance, just as I always thought it would. "I promise, I will only use it for evil!"

"It?" She repeated slowly.

"Uh, I mean..." I hesitated, realizing what I had just said in the heat of the moment. I looked up at the blue sky again. "I will only use him for evil!"

"Him?" She said, raising a single eyebrow and folding her deadly arms. I stood back down, letting go of my waist. I was rather surprised at that, seeing as nothing about Buttercup's personality had ever been female. I certainly didn't want a feminist as an apprentice, not to mention I can't stand females.

"Oh come on!" I whined in partly childish desperation. "I've always wanted a son! An evil, powerful son who could cause destruction such as this!" I motioned towards the dead scenery, and then I recalled a certain plan of mine. "I recall having three little boys long ago... and then a certain somebody and her sisters blew them up!"

She rolled her eyes in partial boredom. "Get over it."

I folded my arms. "You don't want to be my 'it' then you are my son. Take it or find yourself someplace else to sleep," I pouted. "Besides, you look more like a boy than a girl. When you showed up on my doorstep I mistook you for the paperboy and suspected that you finally figured out I was paying you in counterfeit money." I laughed at my little joke, even though it was true.

She rolled her eyes for a second time. "Fine, whatever. But I'm not calling you 'Dad.'" I too rolled my eyes at this. Teenagers...

Shaking it off, I grinned. It had barely been 10 minutes since she had showed, after all, so I could wait. I took one last look at the carnage the death ray had caused and gave a satisfied nod. I then gestured back in the direction of my observatory, which I make a mental note would have to be fixed. Good thing I now had someone to help. "Come Junior. We have much to plan."

* * *

><p>We had returned through the gigantic hole in my home. It was only just as we had made our way back into the main room and I turned around that we both saw something that made me go as pale as the time Hacha Chacha had realized he was out of bananas. Through the window we could see two streaks of light were moving in our direction, one pink, one blue. It was the Powerpuff Girls! Knowing I could not let her new power get discovered now, I frantically turned to her, rapidly concocting a plan. "Quick! Hide!" I warned.<p>

"But I can take 'em!" she objected, flinging her upper limbs upwards.

"Don't be foolish," I said. "Just get to some place that is out of sight!"

"But –" She tried to counter, but I cut over her.

"You will release your destruction another time! For now, hide!"

She gritted her teeth, gulping down what I assumed was high-tension anger. I could see why she wanted to face them here and now. I would want to! But she eventually saw my way of thinking. She zoomed in the direction of the bathroom. Not a moment too soon, before the door was slammed open. In hovered the two remaining Powerpuffs. The real bane and cause of my existence as a villain. Briefly forgetting that I now had a fighting chance against him, I looked up and took them in, having not seen them in years.

"You wouldn't have anything to do with this, would you, Mojo Jojo?" Blossom had a rather annoying voice that sparked my irritation, and probably Buttercup's too. She had matured into a moderately attractive teenager, but also one that was clearly was too full of herself, self-centered, and occasionally snobbish at times, rather like Princess Morbucks. Compared to my most recent clear memory of her, as a tough 12-year-old, she was even bitchier now. It was not like me to use bad language, hence why I cut out anything foul language Buttercup had said, but the situation deemed it appropriate.

Bubbles, on the other hand, was a teenage boy's dream. Still sporting her trademark pigtails, in comparison to Blossom who had ditched her bow but kept the long hair, she had a rather bulging chest, good-looking thighs, and she bore the signs of one who spent a half-hour on their hair every morning. Anyways, they remained hovering there, waiting for my answer. I hoped Buttercup didn't do anything foul or stupid. I decided to say something that would fulfill both her and their expectations. Taking in a deep breath, I began.

"Me? Nooo!" I responded, putting on a show I hadn't done in quite some time. "All I saw was a flash of bright light and then suddenly a wall of my home is missing! Do you think I would really destroy my own lair like this? Deface my own property? Demolish what is mine? Of course not! Besides! When is the last time I have committed such a crime? And have I ever done something with this much destruction? No!" With pacing back and forth, clever hand gestures, and other motions, I felt much younger. It was good to be evil! I wish I could meet the man who did this so I could shake his hand! I wish I knew who created such disaster so that I may learn from him! I also wish I knew who he was so that I may politely ask for some funds to rebuild the blown down wall of my house! Unfortunately I do not know him! Yes! Sadly, I do not know who is responsible for this brilliant scene of devastation! Perhaps if you catch the culprit you will let me know so that I may meet this great villain and send him my praise?" They were left totally silenced, mouths open. I assumed that they too had momentarily forgotten the true power of Mo' Linguish.

"Blossom, I think he's telling the truth!" Bubbles squeaked, her voice having not changed much, if at all. "Mojo wouldn't not take credit for something like this if he really did it! He's too full of himself!" Blossom mulled over her sister's words. I was glad that Bubbles could see innocence even in those who realized their evil. Perhaps that could be a useful tool when the time came...

"Well, okay…" Blossom began hesitantly. "But we'll be keeping an eye on you, Mojo!" she added quickly. "Come on, Bubbles!" With only minor hesitation, the two of them floated out the door. I'll never forget the stare they gave me as they went out. The last time I ever had a remotely civilized chat with those two.

I had only just shut the door when a certain voice interrupted me. "So you'd like to shake my hand and send me some praise, huh?" Turning around, I saw her returning through a door, smirking in delight. I too had surprised myself with what I had said, feeling like I had not gone into a rant quite like that in a long time. It felt good.

"Oh, shut up!" I snapped at her, rolling my pupils yet again. She playfully giggled as I paced my way to the couch and lay back, picking up the remote.

"Hey, Mojo?" she asked suddenly. Turning, I saw that she seemed both curious and concerned, whatever was currently residing on the forefront of her mind. I regarded her equally curious, as the television flicked on.

"What is it?" I replied, flicking through the channels. Every news network was reporting the same thing, the destruction she was not yet identified as responsible for.

"Where's my room?" I paused briefly. I had not thought of that facet. She would need somewhere to sleep. For now, she would need another subtle reminder that being a villain would not be easy.

I gave a short laugh, followed by a grimace. "What makes you think you are special enough to deserve your own room in my lair?" At least, without... proving your powers a bit more, I thought to myself. Rotating her own eyes yet again, she took a seat on the worn couch beside me. For a few minutes, she just watched in silence as I continued to flick through the channels. Various stations showed dead bodies that were being identified, some with family members crying, while others had experts fathoming over what caused it.

"So where do I sleep?" she finally asked.

"On the couch," I said, patting the empty space beside me. At least for the moment, she would sleep there.

"Does it pull out into a bed?" She asked.

"Nope," I replied simply, hiding much subtext behind that word.

"You suck," she replied back. Shaking her head, she leaned backwards on the couch, relaxing. I could tell she found me rather amusing now, in contrast to earlier years, when she found me more annoying than her sisters.

"It's called 'tough love,' my son," I said back, turning up the sound volume on the TV set so we could hear every word said by the people. As we listened in, together I might add, I said one last thing. "Tough love."

* * *

><p>The rest of the day was interesting. Once the news had stopped covering the destruction of a mile's worth of city blocks, I had let her be for a while, while I did as many arrangements as I could, seeing as all these events thus far had happened within a day without fair warning. The most difficult one was regarding the Villains' Council. I knew that the real problem wouldn't be getting there, or even them believing that Buttercup had changed. It would be getting her in. For a while back...<p>

I shook off the thought. Now was not the time to worry about it. I would place a phone call in the morning, and then it was merely a matter of time before Thursday, when the next meeting would be. Three days. Today was Monday. Tomorrow, coincidentally, was Halloween. Perfect for a little villainy...

That night, I made Buttercup a special dinner, saying it was the best celebration for our newfound partnership in evil that I could do in less than one day. While that one night that I had been their babysitter, they had found my hibachi chef skills repulsive, she thankfully found it to be 'meh, okay,' this time around. I had laughed there, her statement confirming that she was the kind who liked pizza and, when you were broke, ordered it to someone else's address and stole it out of the dumpster later. Ironically, I myself found pizza to be similarly 'meh, okay.'

Once our meals had been consumed, which took less time than it should have as I only talked occasionally, savoring my excellent cooking, we talked. We just chatted, engaged in conference and otherwise exchanged information between each other.

We spoke about her recently discovered ability. We relished in the knowledge that no one else yet knew that she was responsible for what had happened to the town today, and how they would react when it was revealed who it was. She told me what had happened at the school earlier today, how she had her outburst, particularly against her sisters, and how they reacted. She also told me about how she received her scars, though I knew most of this story anyway, how she was treated because of them, which I only knew bits of, and how and why she killed that boy the previous day. I also told her things. The inventions, machines and other forms of technologies I had been working on as of late, the book I was currently engaged in, and finally, after much persuasion on her part, I told her how I came to realize my destiny.

I told her what I could remember from before the accident, which didn't amount to a lot. I told her how I knew it deep down ever since the incident with the C-X, but that it took a small bit of time to realize it; in contrast, it took her four years. I told her how I was viewed as a freak, and how I attempted to surpass the evil motions. But the day before I had saved them in that alley, a hobo had suggested I take a bath and get a new hat. I wasn't even going to begin telling the anger I had felt at that moment, for it was too obvious. I simply stated what I did. I pummeled him until he was no longer living, until his bruised, weakened chest no longer breathed oxygen.

"That same night, I realized how I must gain respect from the despicable citizens of this city," I told her. "No one would understand me having the deformities I had. They did not care about me. They had such small, narrow-minded minds. Minds the size of peanuts! The size of a penny! Minds that did not have the capacity to process that my appearance did not measure my worth! No. People like that do not comprehend what is different from them. They just toss us aside, pretending that we do not exist. That is why we must show them what we are truly made of, and that is why we must gain control of a world like this. So that we can show everyone who has shunned us just who the monsters really are. Them. They are the hideous beasts. They are the true monsters, and they are not good. No. There is no such thing as good in this world! There are merely different kinds of evil! They are the lame kinds who do not even realize their own wickedness. We are the superior kinds of evil! Yes. The villains who harness the sin within us and use it to our greatest advantage. And just for using our God-given gifts and doing what is instinct to us, we are punished and labeled 'bad,' while those who give us that name, name themselves and their own so-called ways of life as 'good.'" I shook my head, having wanted to let that all out for years now. She was the first person I thought would understand where I was coming from. "The world needs to learn a lesson, and it is us who must teach it to them."

She nodded slowly. She did believe what I had just said. That was good. It was great. No, it was brilliant. Now she understood me fully. Now I was truly glad today's events had transpired the way they did. Now I was glad that she was my son. The only question was... when to break the news?

"Now, Junior," I began, whilst starting to clear the table of utensils, ready to have some fun while still remaining serious. "You may do the dishes."

"What?" She objected, raising an eyebrow. I had expected that. "Are you serious?" She followed me as I made my way over to the sink, carrying all the plates. Once I had hoisted myself upon a small stool and reached the faucet, I placed them in the main sink along with everything else. She watched me. We both knew that it wouldn't take long at all, especially for her, but she, naturally, wouldn't like it. Heck, I didn't like doing it, and I like keeping things clean, as wrong as that sounds for the world's greatest current villain.

"Did you not expect to have any responsibilities while you stay here?" I asked back. I jabbed a chubby finger of mine into her stomach, making her recoil slightly. "You will do the dishes every night from now on! Yes! After I prepare a meal for us both, you will clean the plates, cups, forks, knives, spoons, spatulas, pots, pans – anything that is dirty must be cleaned! And they will be cleaned by you! This is your responsibility from now on, my son!" I still repeatedly poked her in the lower abdomen with my finger, making her growl, seemingly with minor anger. "No, this is not vacation! This is not a holiday! You are not relaxing on some sunny beach in Miami! You are not at Disneyland! You're not even at that god-awful California Adventure! You are here! With me! In my top secret observatory! And you will contribute to this family! And the way in which you will contribute is by washing these dishes!"

"Do I have to do them now –"

"Yes!" I lashed back. Now even a day and already I admired parents for the hard work they had to do. Hopefully I would get used to it given time.

"But I can –"

"No buts!" I leaped down from the tiny stool, as she leaned over and rapidly began doing the job as fast as her powers would allow her. "I will be waiting for you in –"

"Done," she interrupted. Stopping in my tracks, I looked over my shoulder, observing that she was correct. As I stared, amazed as ever, she leaned on the side, rapidly drying her hands with a spare dishtowel. A short laugh from her brought me back to me senses.

"Very well," I said with a grunted huff. "Go and get ready for bed. I shall bring you a blanket and pillow." We made our way back into the main room. I left her and veered left into my own room.

Once I had located a spare blanket, having chosen the biggest one I could find, but which was probably still too small for her, and, regrettably, taken one of my four pillows, I returned to the main room. She had replaced her jeans with sweatpants, and removed her jacket, now sporting a typical rock/punk-themed short-sleeved t-shirt She appeared to be staring at her own hands. Just as I approached, she said something I didn't quite hear.

"What was that?" I asked as I drew closer.

"Nothing," she said, looking up. Just as I was about to put down the sleeping utensils beside her, I noticed her arm scars fully for the first time.

"Eeww," I said, partly disgusted. They were several on both arms. They were unlike any scars I had ever seen. Instead of merely tracing over the flesh, they were carved into it, as though were minor chunks had been taken out. Towards the center of the scars, I noticed that they were more red and deep. While they did not leak blood, they looked like they would. I understood fully why she had hidden them so much now. Who wouldn't?

"Yeah, I know," she replied simply. Many thoughts were probably surfacing on her mind right now, though. She took the blanket and pillow from my hands. "Thanks."

"Get some rest," I said, walking away to my own room. "We have much to do tomorrow."

"G'night," she yawned as I drew further away. Just as I was at the doorway to my room, and the door was half open, I paused, looking back.

She was lying under the blanket, which didn't cover her properly, her head resting on the pillow. Although she wasn't asleep yet, I could tell she needed the rest, after a hard day. Tomorrow we would do a lot. No, it wouldn't be the death of the Powerpuffs. Not yet, or no Villains' Council for her. But she would get to meet them again. And the city would know of its latest threat.

Jojo Junior. Mojo Jojo's son.

Smiling to myself, I pushed the door open and left, leaving her alone.

* * *

><p><strong>That was the longest chapter I've ever written yet. Maybe a little overly long for a fanfiction chapter, but I'm writing this with a novel in mind; hence the writing style and the way that every chapter is primarily a flashback. Since this story is basically Mojo's last 24 hours, it won't be overly long. Consider it shedding new light on Villain (with only tiny changes here and there). For me, this fic is a test-run at novel writing.<br>**

**Next chapter will be here real soon; bear with me, fellas. **


	3. Nearly Quarter Past Eleven

NEARLY QUARTER PAST ELEVEN

_More time has passed by this time. It is almost midnight by now, so I don't really expect any visitors. Although that has its benefits. This way, I have more peace and quiet to remember every thought. While I do not expect to be able to go over every thought, I think the next important event that happened after the events of October 30__th__ 2006 are probably the very next day._

_I don't have a diary entry for that day. Some days are so packed that one forgets to write it down. But I can still remember it clearly._

* * *

><p>Having woken up rather early, I set about getting ready for the day's events. Following a rapid shower and putting on my usual evil attire, I made my way into the main room. Before Junior and I went out to... have some practice, I would have to arrange something else. Glancing over in her direction, I saw that she was still asleep. The blanket was hanging on the ground, and she looked a bit shaken, but she was okay. Good. Quietly, I made my way over to the telephone in the corner, by the collapsible chair. Once I had picked it up, I dialed the number, and waited through the connecting timeframe and many beeps...<p>

"_What is it, Mojo?_" asked an eerie, booming voice. The voice alone was not very scary, but I did hesitate before I answered.

"Listen closely," I said. "For our next top-secret meeting, I wish to bring along someone with me."

"_Is that why you called me this early? I was getting into shape!"_

"Yes, that is of course why I called you ahead of time," I snapped back across the line. "I would not just bring someone unexpectedly, without warning or permission, to our top secret meeting! Of course not! Which is why I telephoned you to ask for your permission to do so, seeing as you are head of the council and such. As president of the group you should know of my intentions to bring with me a stranger, which is why I am telling you now: I wish to bring along someone who wishes to be a villain, and should therefore be a part of our assembly."

"_Well, who is this person?_"

"Who is it?" I hesitated briefly. It was probably not wise to reveal this information yet. No need to spoil the surprise. Everyone would know soon enough, after all. "Why does that matter? You will meet him there in person and know for yourself! After gazing upon him with your own eyes, you will then learn who he is!"

"_Come on, monkey boy!_" hissed the voice. "_I demand to know who it is!_"

"Well, if you must know," I said with a sigh, knowing I would have to say something. "Have you been watching the news lately? Yes? The destruction that happened yesterday at –"

"_Near your volcano?_"

"Yes."

"_He caused that?_"

"Yes, it is him whom I wish to bring," I said simply.

"_Are you sure? Did you see it happen?_"

"Yes," I stated matter-of-factly.

"_Is this person worthy of acceptance to our council?_"

"Of course," I said, relaxing a little. "Yes, he is very powerful indeed."

"_This person's name_?"

"What's his name?" I hesitated. He would believe me, but it would be better if he was kept in the dark for the moment. "Just keep your eyes on the news and you will learn soon enough!"

"_Why do you always gotta irritate everybody? Is this really necessary?_"

"Yes! I really must be this secretive! I simply cannot reveal this person's name to you! I cannot share his identity, his name, or who he is! It is much too complicated a situation, and frankly you would not believe me even if I told you! Now, this person is my newly adopted son, and he will be accompanying me to the council meetings from this point on. We shall see you this Thursday. Goodbye." I hung up the phone, glad that that part was out of the way. I turned around to see Joey sitting up, looking tired.

"Who was that?" she yawned, stretching her arms out. I then became aware that her hands were glowing green again, and pointing straight at me.

"Watch where you point those things!" I exclaimed, ducking.

She noticed them too. "Shit!" She whipped them downwards, just as a quick zap of the ray shot out. It missed me, instead hitting a rare house plant in the corner of the room. The small valuable shrub withered within seconds and then exploded into dust that congregated around the now-empty pot. Her hands were still glowing. She kept them as clenched as she could, hiding them between her walking limbs underneath the blanket.

"Will you learn to control that?" I shouted over the hissing sound the ray was making. I leapt my way to behind the couch, crouching down in case the worst happened, and my lair suffered yet more damage.

"I can't help it!" She yelled back. I could hear them growing more deadly. Before I could decide on whether to make a run for it, she started singing "Row, row, row your boat," over and over.

I leaned over the couch to find her crouching over, trying to soothe away the ray. "This is no time for nursery rhymes and songs!" She had sung it almost sixty times before her hands finally stopped glowing and returned to their normal color and shade.

She held them in front of her, examining them while she blinked in what I assumed was confusion. "The same stuff happened to Blossom," she said.

"What?" I asked, unsure of what I had heard.

"When she discovered her ice breath, it would go off all on its own just when she breathed a little too hard," she reminisced quietly. "It did that for a while before she finally got the hang of how it worked and stuff."

"Exactly how long is 'a while?' I inquired, more paranoid than normal.

"For Blossom..." She thought. "I think if was about two or three months."

"Well, you do not have two or three months!" I said impatiently, folding my arms. This wouldn't do "You do not have even one month! I will not be running for shelter every time your freaky little hands gain minds of their own! No way, Jose! You must learn to control your new power and do so quickly!"

"But I dunno how!" she argued. "I need to like practice with it or something and it's not like I can do that!"

"Who said you couldn't?" I said before I realized it. Changing tactic, I turned and left to go prepare breakfast. For she followed me as I had hoped, it was not for those reasons that I thought.

"Mojo," she said. I stopped and turned. "Who was that on the phone?"

"A very important person," I said, not willing to discuss this right now.

"What meeting are we going to this Thursday?" she asked.

"A very important meeting!" I snapped, hoping she would get the hint.

If she did, she ignored it. "Can't you be specific when I want you to be?"

I scratched my chin, evaluating my situation, before I finally decided to relent. "Very well. It is the Villains' Council."

"What's that?" she asked predictably. Ecstatically, I told her.

"A very important board whose members are all worthy enough to be called 'villains.' A very selective group – a proud organization! We are the persons who will change the world someday! We are the superior evil!" I shook my fist, mocking oppressed melodramatics everywhere.

"And you were talking to the President of this... Villains' Council?"

"Precisely!" I said without hesitation.

"Who is that?" she inquired curiously.

"A very powerful and evil man – supposedly the most powerful and evil being alive!" Of course, no one knew whether said being was actually living...

She thought for a moment. I could tell she was thinking of all the villains she had ever faced, before she finally realized who. "Do you mean... Him?"

I simply nodded, turning back in the direction of the kitchen. "Bathe, and get dressed. After breakfast, we shall get you your practice."

* * *

><p>Following a rather simple breakfast, although soon Junior would feel like she had had ten breakfasts, we started making our way into the center of town. There, she would get a fair chance to "play" with her newfound power. Eventually the Powerpuff Girls would appear, and she would test it on them, without seriously maiming them. That part would come some other time.<p>

"This way you will learn to control your new ability!" I said as we walked. Flying would have been quicker, but we could not get noticed. Once we got there, she could get noticed as much as she liked though. And I could not yet another chunk of my home get blown away so easily!

"But I don't wanna control it," she whined. Adolescents... "I want to just let it all go! And let it hit 'em hard! And just let it kill my good for nothing sis –"

"No!" I cut across her hard. "There will be no killing of the Puffs today!"

"What?" she said in suspended disbelief. "But –"

"No killing! Absolutely none! Now, civilians – why yes of course! You are welcome to destroy as many of them as you wish! But the Powerpuff Girls are off limits! You must prove yourself to the Villains' Council before you go ahead and destroy your enemies! The Council will not appreciate you if you just destroy the thing they've sought after all their lives. Therefore, you cannot kill your sisters. You'll never gain membership if you do that! And believe me, for many reasons, this an organization you must be a part of! Do not jeopardize any chance at this! It will already be a challenge for you to be accepted as it is. Yes, you're going to have a difficult time trying to gain membership to the organization… A very difficult time…" Even if today's events went off smoothly, our chances were still small. Good thing I had a backup plan in case she did not gain acceptance into the board. She would... one way or another.

"Why?" She said shortly, slightly suspicious. "'Cause I used to be a Powerpuff Girl and kick all their asses all the time?"

"Correct!" I said, glad she was catching on. However, that was merely the most obvious problem. "That... and I imagine some other things..."

"Like what?" she asked me, endlessly curious.

"Just a few simple complications! We'll discuss this another time," I said with shifty, suspicious eyes, as we looked left and right before exiting a side alley, making our way into another one as soon as possible to avoid any probable detection. "We are almost at our destination!"

"Is it 'cause I'm a girl?" she asked. She had not yet caught on.

"Don't be ridiculous!" I said instantly. "We have plenty of female members! We have, let's see, that brat Princess Morbucks! Yes. She and… hmm….Sedusa, and…. Well, actually now that I think about it that's all the girls we have…. But that is beside the point! The Council does not discriminate against one's sex or gender! And how many times must I remind you? You are my son now! Son! As in boy! As in male! As in guy! Chap! Fellow! As in the spitting evil image of your father, who is me! Mojo Jojo! You are Jojo Junior! Otherwise more fondly known as Little Joey!" Surely after all that she would just accept that she was a guy now, but no. She was adamant.

"You do realize," she said with an air of annoyance, "that no matter how many times you call me 'Junior' or 'son' that it ain't gonna change –"

"Silence, Junior!" I shouted stubbornly, cutting across her. "We're here."

Looking around the little area we were in, deep evil grins crept across our faces. Within a minute, chaos would be running rampant throughout the area. Those people that we could see didn't even notice us, they were that stupid. We laughed in future victory as loud as we could without attracting attention. This felt good, great actually. It hadn't been two days and we had bonded more than we had in ten years, ever since she had said that one line.

"_You just gotta believe in yourself_," she had said.

"Okay!" I said finally, ending our laughing. "I will be in this library, watching from the top floor." I motioned at the building in front of which we were currently residing. "Whatever you do, do not hit this library! For I will be inside! And if you destroy this library, you destroy me as well! Which is not a good thing! So keep the destruction in that direction!" I jabbed my thumb in the opposite direction. She stood there, silently accepting my words.

Before I knew what I was doing, I had her in another hug. "Make me proud, son!" I said before releasing her. I gleefully entered the library and, bending low to avoid being seen; I made my ways towards the stairs.

Once I had exited them on the top floor, I got as close as I could to the window. Picking a book off a shelf at random, I pretended to read it, but my eyes were looking out the window. No one else was there bar the librarian, so that move turned out to be totally useless, but never mind.

She was floating in mid-air. Her jacket had been removed, her arms fully visible. Her hands had just started glowing the deathly green. I watched as she seemed to mull something over before she finally opened her hands fully, letting it loose on an apartment building about 100 feet away. As she had not been charging for as long, the beam wasn't a big nor as bright, but it still crumbled the wall it had hit into nothing, leaving people in loads of apartments looking at her.

She then formed her fingers into a fist, and the beam ceased. She had got the gist of it. The people inside the broken building had seen by now. All at once, all hell broke loose. Some just stared at her, some ran to get valuable, while most just ran for their lives. The people on the street had noticed by now too. Many were screaming and fleeing, too many yelling "HELP!"

She still focused on the buildings. Opening her fingers, she hit the roof enough so that it collapsed upon itself. She closed it on that. Over and over, she opened and closed her hands until the apartment building was just a gigantic heap of rubble. Anyone who wasn't hit by the death ray was crushed.

Following this, she floated down onto the pavement. Clenching her fists, she allowed them to build up to a sufficient level. While she did that, people were running everywhere. Some were running as fast as they could, others were bringing their children, while weaker ones were trampled and a few shoved other aside to get through. I even noticed the librarian running away, giving me a good excuse to drop the book and watch properly. Some people had almost gotten away fully before she finally let it go. By now, I was watching very intently, my eyes moving back and forth with the epicentre of the action and taking in how she looked. She was relishing in the glory. Good.

She attached herself to the ground before she let it go. Moving her arms back and forth, she was able to get as many people as she could, vanquishing buildings totally. Unlike before, she didn't get weak. I almost swore I could see her muscles expanding, but that could have been my imagination.

Minutes later, it was all over. The street was littered with dead, unscathed bodies. There were only a few living ones left, trying to save those caught underneath all the dead ones, mostly children. There were even a few stupid ones crying by dead family and friends, hoping they'd come back.

She seemed to decide that they would go with everyone else. I would estimate that 50 were already dead, and now that number would only grow.

She was just starting to charge up again when a loud voice that even I heard broke her concentration, but her grin grew ever wider shortly after.

"Not so fast, Kid!"

She let her fiery fists return to normal, just as her sisters arrived. They hovered behind her, yet they did not know who she was, as they could not see her face and she held her arms in front of her. I could see the two of them looking confused, but also serious, while Joey, I could tell, was planning all sorts of ways to mess with them.

"So you're the one responsible for this mess!" said Blossom, although I could tell she had no idea who Joey was yet. She let an evil grin cross her face, and I knew she planned to want them suffer the way she suffered, even though she could not kill them... yet.

"Aww," she said in a tone that, like I had previously, mocked drama queens everywhere. "You caught me! Well, I guess it's about time, huh?"

They remained frozen in poorly animated horror, obviously having recognized her voice. Before they made any move, she flipped around to face them. Then gasped and recoiled when they recognized her. As they should.

"After all," she began in a fake sweet voice, "I'm sure you both lost a lot of sleep last night, wondering just who or what had caused so much devastation in your precious little city." She paid no heed to their shocked faces, but I could tell she really loved them deep down. "Do you like what I've done to the place? I think I'm done for the day, but if you'd like to see my work in action, I'd gladly plow down another mile or two."

"It can't be!" shouted Blossom in denial. She grabbed her head and shook it back and forth, as though this was a dream. "No, no, no, no, no..."

"Buttercup," Bubbles cried out, already letting loose a few drops of water. Ironically, I had rarely seen Bubbles cry. "Why haven't you been home? A-And what are you doing here? Why are your hands glowing like that?"

"What am I doing here?" Joey laughed, not identifying that Bubbles knew what she saw, she was simply trying to deny it. "I'm the one who did all this, Dummy! And these glowing hands of mine are what helped me!"

"No!" Blossom shouted. She still shook her head in denial. "You have to be lying! Buttercup, you're a Powerpuff Girl! You couldn't have done this! You're supposed to protect and help people, not… not… this."

"A Powerpuff Girl? No." I could see her charging up her death ray behind her back. She floated towards them, causing Blossom to grab the sobbing Bubbles and pull her away from Joey. "You are the Powerpuff Girls, making you the ones I must destroy." She then aimed her hands out at them.

"Bubbles, move!" Blossom yanked Bubbles out of the way just in time. The short attack only just missed them, instead zapping the energy out of an old lady mourning beside three other bodies. Just as the woman collapsed onto the ground, barely breathing, Joey floated over to her as she gasped.

"You see," she began, "I realize now that I ain't meant to be a hero." She then stepped on the old woman's chest, making her cough more. "I'm meant to be something a whole lot better. Don't you see? I'm meant for evil."

Blossom finally stopped shaking her head, finishing it with a final heavy vibration. "No!" She made to fly over, but she stopped in her tracks when Joey held up a hand that cackled with electricity and danced with flames. "Buttercup! Please stop this!" Blossom's eyes then fell upon the old woman.

Grinning, Joey addressed the aging human, who she didn't look at, still glaring at Blossom. "I'm sorry, Ma'am, are you having trouble breathing?"

"Buttercup, stop this!" cried out Blossom desperately.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Ma'am, I really, truly am." Joey was learning from me.

"STOP!" Blossom wailed, almost at tears herself now.

"Oh, were these dead gentlemen besides you here your sons? I'm sorry about that, Ma'am." She continued to not look the woman in the eye.

"Buttercup, please!" now Bubbles joined in.

Joey smirked at Bubbles and Blossom. As tears welled up in their eyes, Joey finally looked at the woman directly. "Well, don't you worry, Ma'am," she smiled. "You'll all be together once again soon."

She finally used the ray on her. Within five seconds, she stopped, its job already done. The other two were still horrified as Joey looked at the bodies.

"Neat huh?" She said, holding out her hands. Although they were normal now, the Puffs still flinched at the sight of them. "I think everyone here would agree that this is way cooler than any dumb ice breath!"

"Buttercup," Blossom said, still in denial. "How could you do that?"

"It's real easy," she answered. "I can show you again if you like."

"Buttercup!" Bubbles moaned. She launched herself at Joey, probably hoping for a hug, but Joey knocked her onto the ground before she got close.

"Don't you touch me!" she yelled, all previous humor absent. Bubbles stayed put on the cracked pavement, crying into her hands. Joey rolled her eyes at this before she turned her attention back to Blossom.

"So what's it gonna be, Miss Leader?" Joey asked, adding wit to her dialogue. "You came here looking for a fight, well aren't you gonna fight it?"

Blossom's only immediate response was to blink a few times in confusion. "Buttercup… what's happened to you?"

Just like I would, Joey simply laughed. "I told ya, Sis! I realized just who I am!" She began charging up her death ray yet again.

"Buttercup, I'm not going to fight you!" Blossom shouted, her eyes focused on the spheres that engulfed Joey's fists. "You're my sister! Now, please stop this and we'll take you home! We'll find out what's happening to you and stop it! We'll make you better! Just please stop this craziness!"

"You want me to stop, huh?" she teased, pointing her charging fists as Blossom. "Well, you're gonna have to make me!" The ray that had only briefly being charged hit Blossom directly. I saw her knocked back directly until she finally knocked off a brick wall, upon which Joey shut off the ray. Once she impacted the ground, Bubbles rushed to her side.

Although I had been worried that Blossom was dead, which would have ruined everything at this point, these fears were surpassed as Blossom stood up, leaning on Bubbles for support. She was only just standing, though. As Joey laughed at the fact that they had no chance, I too decided to laugh.

"Woo hoo! In your face! Mwahahahahaha!" However, they all heard me. The two Puffs looked at each other and then at Joey.

"Is that Mojo Jojo?" Bubbles inquired to her, but Blossom cut across.

"Of course!" Blossom shouted, jumping to conclusions. "I knew it! He's behind all this! He's brainwashed Buttercup!"

"Don't be so stupid! Mojo ain't done nothin' to me! How many times do I got to tell you? This is who I am, and you better get used to it!" She laughed.

"Come on, Bubbles!" said Blossom, paying Joey's words no heed whatsoever. "Let's go get that monkey for messing with our sister!"

They moved in my direction. Memories of similar beatings made me squirm and duck down out of sight.

"You leave him out of this," said Joey's voice angrily.

"Buttercup, don't you see? He's done something to you!" Blossom said.

"You stubborn twit!" snarled Joey again. I told you already he ain't done nothin'! You want someone to blame for my destruction? Do you want to know who's really responsible for all this?"

"Who?" asked Bubbles as innocently as she could given the situation.

"YOU!" I heard punching being dealt. "YOU, THE PROFESSOR, AND THIS WHOLE WORLD IS TO BLAME! YOU CAUSED ME THIS PAIN! YOU BROUGHT OUT THIS EVIL IN ME! AND NOW YOU'RE ALL GONNA PAY!"

Even though I was ducking down, green light slightly blinded my vision. Standing up again, I saw that she was blasting a really deep crater in the road right next to the two Puffs. The light from this show illuminated their screaming faces, looking like something pulled out of a NC-17 horror movie. For some reason, Joey wasn't hurt despite the lack of humans in her path. I guess all the insects in the ground counted for something.

Finally, the ray stopped. After laughing for what felt like an hour, Joey floated down to the ground in front of them. "Don't you see, guys? There's a new villain in town, and that's me. Now are you gonna fight me or aren't ya?"

"Bubbles," Blossom said, still shaking from the beam. "We have to go."

"What?" Bubbles said, not believing the words she had heard from Blossom's mouth. "But wh-what about Buttercup? We can't just leave her here! We have to take her home! W-We have to help her! We have to –"

"No, Bubbles," Blossom objected, floating her into the air. "We have to go!" She grabbed Bubbles hand and shot off in the direction of Townsville's suburbs, pink and blue light streaks streaming behind them.

Once several seconds had passed, I felt it was safe to emerge. Making my way downstairs through the deserted library, I came outside to find her standing in the middle of the deserted road, laughing. As I approached, she heard me and turned. We both smiled. She looked briefly younger.

"I did good?" she asked, smiling down from her five foot eight height.

"Swell," I responded, squeezing her leg to show affection. "Swell."

She then made to pick me up, obviously intending to zip back to the observatory, but I stepped out of her grip.

"Actually, why don't we walk?" I said, gesturing down the road that was deserted for miles. "That way, we can talk."

Laughing briefly, she gave me a quick nudge before she grabbed me around the waist. Before I could resist, she launched us into the sky. Although I struggled at first, I relented eventually. If it made her happy, that was fine, and we had the rest of the day to do all the talking that we would want.

* * *

><p>That night, we spent loads of time laughing like the megalomaniac's we were at every news network on the television at least once. The whole town was now aware that Buttercup was no longer a hero, but a villain. 63 deaths were reported, with others missing. More would join that number soon.<p>

"Good job, my son!" I said, tipping my glass of wine towards her before I took a sip. Smiling, she took a sip of her own. She had been reluctant at first, having never tasted alcohol before, but I insisted that, much like I did many years ago, she would soon grow to like it.

"Do you think the Council will like what I did?" she honestly asked.

"I'm sure of it!" I said without hesitation, speaking the truth that time.

"So that means I'll be a real villain then right? They'll let me join, right?"

Rather than answering, I dunked down some more wine instead. "We'll see," was all I said to her. Even though the meeting was only two days away, I did not feel like talking about it right then. If I did, she would get rather worried, considering all the complications that were involved. I did not like the organization as much anymore. Back in its golden days, when I was President, before Him stole the role. Ever since, very little had actually happened in meetings. In fact, we ever decided to have them less regularly, first at every fortnight and finally at only once a month.

Still... Joey and I had this moment of happiness. I knew she found the whole 'son' thing annoying, but she would probably grow to at least acknowledge me as her dad. Only once that time came would I tell her about my theory about me being the closest thing she had to a biological dad. And though she considered the whole 'son' thing a joke, I was sure that she would warm up to it given time. At least, more then she liked it right now. I just couldn't stand girls. Not for the life of me. Romance meant nothing for me.

"Hey, Mojo?" she asked suddenly. Turning, I saw that the wine was starting to take effect on her, for she could not keep a straight face.

"Yes?" She smiled at me, giggling a little, while I regarded her with a confused face.

"I just wanted to say… Thanks. For everything." I raised an eyebrow as she smiled an honest smile. I could tell she meant it. She was glad for all this.

"I think someone has had too much wine for the night," I said, plucking the wine glad from her grip and standing up from the couch. She just laughed, shaking her head as I went to the kitchen.

"It's late," I called into the main room as I quickly rinsed the wine glasses, leaving them to dry next to the faucet. "You should get to bed. There's much to do tomorrow in preparation for Thursday."

"Okay," she smiled as I came back in. She had already changed, and was just getting out the blanket and pillow. "Goodnight, Mojo."

Goodnight, Joey."


	4. Ten To Midnight

TEN TO MIDNIGHT

_Almost midnight, huh? Well, I suppose I can rest comfortably knowing that I'll live into the next day, at least. Guess that makes me feel a little better._

_My stomach grumbled weirdly. Is that hunger? I had been in my bed for the past week, and I had eaten as much as I could, so why I was hungry was a mystery, even to me._

_Then I realized these were stomach cramps. I double over, trying to block them out. As I do so, I think of similar cramps._

_Except those cramps weren't physical, but caused by other people._

* * *

><p>The next day, Wednesday, I woke up quite early. It was only fifteen past six. Good. Upon entering the main living room of the observatory, I found Junior asleep soundly on the couch. She was peaceful, with the same smile that had appeared yesterday after all the wine. Of course, the effects of said alcohol would be gone by now.<p>

I made my way to the room where she had discovered her death ray ability. As rapidly as I could, I got to work. I relocated the computer monitor elsewhere. Then, I brought in a nightstand. After placing a black electronic alarm clock down and setting the alarm function to exactly 7am, I put down a lamp, the lampshade missing since many years ago. Finally, I dragged in a small twin size bed, placing upon said sleeping appliance a single pillow and some dark green sheets. That had been my spare bed on those cases when my bedroom had been damaged by the Powerpuff Girls breaking in. However, I hopefully wouldn't need it anymore.

Now that that was ready, I made my way into the kitchen. After preparing a quick breakfast for myself and eating it down, I took a rapid shower. Finally, I made a rapid breakfast for Junior (buttered toast with a helping of scrambled eggs) and made my way back into the room where she was still sleeping.

"Wake up!" I shouted, slamming down the tray containing her morning meal on the coffee table.

She cringed, opening her eyes groggily. "Ugh," she mumbled, pulling the blanket over her head in the hope of blocking me out. "What time is it?"

"Seven o'clock in the morning," I responded automatically. "It is time to start the day, so wake up." Reaching forward, I pulled the blanket off of her.

"Can't I sleep in for another hour, at least?" she whined, just like a boy.

"No," I said, firmer than a mile-long wall of bricks.

"But –"

"No buts!" I shouted back. "Now, get up and have your breakfast. You will be awaking at seven every weekday from now on! I will not have a lazy oaf for a son! As I have said before, this is not a vacation – break – retreat – holiday! There are responsibilities to be taken care of!"

"Ugh," she moaned again, sitting up. Taking the tray of food onto her lap, she started on the toast. "Why seven, though?" she asked as I left. I didn't answer her question, still muttering that this wasn't Cancun. Once I had reached my bedroom, I tracked down 21 books that she would need, five each in Math, Science and Politics, and six in History. Straining under the height and weight of them, for some were rather heavy and large, I returned to her, dropping them onto the coffee table with a thud.

"What're those?" she asked, opening her mouth, showing chewed grub.

"Just because I do not require you to attend school, does not mean you will get away with letting your intelligence deteriorate as you watch foolish cartoons all day!" I began. "You will be expanding your mind and learning essential materials needed in your villainous career! You will be studying, from this moment on, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday unless I otherwise excuse you from your lessons! You will read and you will learn! You will study and teach yourself a variety of valuable information! You will begin these studies, every morning after finishing your chores, and not stop until lunch time, after which I will test you on what you've learned!"

She gulped down what food remained in her mouth. "Chores?"

"Yes. Chores." Like many people of her age, she was not willing to make this that easy. And neither was I.

"So I gotta read all that," she said, gesturing at two feet tall the stack of books, "and do chores? And wake up at seven?"

"Oh, calm yourself down," I raised my voice, making her stop and stare at me. "The only routine chore you have remains the same: clean any dishes that were used to prepare meals. From time to time I shall add tasks for you to complete, such as today."

"So you can just add chores now?" she complained.

"Yes," I said proudly, "because, like it or not, I am the one in charge! I am the man of the house! The master! The chief! The boss! The one who is in command! You are the child! The adolescent! I am the father and you are the son! The son who must obey me – the dad! I am –"

"Alright, alright!" She interrupted into my mouthful of words. "What the hell do I have to do then besides the dishes?"

"Today's task is quite simple," I replied, raising a finger eagerly. "Patch up the hole you blew up into my home!"

"Oh yeah," she said, visually starting as she remembered.

"There are materials you may use in the basement."

"This place has a basement?" she asked, tilting her head in what was obviously confusion. "I thought there was just hot, molten lava underneath us."

"No," I corrected her. "There is a basement and then hot, molten lava."

"Ah," she said shortly. "Well, do I have to finish it all today?"

"Do whatever you wish. However, I should imagine this is a task you should eagerly want to complete." Folding my hands behind me, I turned.

"Why's that?" she asked, lapping up some more breakfast.

"That room is now your room," I answered, starting to leave.

She spluttered, nearly chocking on her scrambled eggs. "Really?"

"Really," I said without any emotion, although I felt it as I left. I set about locating my measuring tape. It took quite some time, as I had not needed to measure myself for new clothes in years. Once I had located it, I swiped on my reading glasses and made my way to Junior's new room.

I entered to find that, although she had moved in her stuff, she had not set about fixing the hole. She was bouncing up and down on the bed like a giddy kid excited about a new trampoline. "Will you cease this foolishness?" I shouted impatiently.

She jumped off of it onto the ground in front of me. "Sorry," she smiled weakly. She then noticed the measuring tape. "What's that?" She pointed at it.

Ignoring her statement, I wrapped the tape around her waist. It came up a few inches shorter then I had expected. "You need to eat more," I said, shaking my head. I checked the sizes of her arms (a little bigger then I had expected), neck (average), chest (what I had expected but her powers were not physically measurable) and legs (same as arms). "How tall are you?"

"Five foot eight," she answered. "Why?"

"What is your shoe size?" I asked, ignoring her question yet again.

"Um..." Clearly not sure, she pulled off her sneaker and checked. "Nine and a half," she said, slipping it back onto her foot.

I hastily scribbled down that and all the other figures onto a piece of paper. "A villain cannot rain doom upon others wearing merely a t-shirt and blue jeans," I explained. "Therefore, I am constructing a uniform for you to wear from now on! A costume that will strike fear! An outfit made of malice! A dark and evil – yet professional and somewhat fashionable – attire!"

"You're gonna make it?" she said, gaping.

"That is correct. After all, I am the one who designed and created this magnificent work!" I motioned dramatically toward my costume, which the years had not effected on. Remembering that she had work to do, I grew a little annoyed. "Now what are you doing jumping on beds? Have I not already told you? You have responsibilities to complete before fun time! This isn't –"

"I know, I know," she said, already used to that line. "It's not a vacation." Sighing, she stood up from the bed. "I'll get to work now, I promise."

I left, giving her freedom to set about fixing the giant hole in the wall. On the way back through the main room, I noticed the huge stack of books still residing on the coffee table. I looked at it thinking.

Making a brief detour, I pulled off a spare piece of paper from the note pad I had. I wrote down a note on it for her:

_Junior,_

_Below is a list of the texts I have selected for you to study and learn. Select a single title from each subject. Single, as in one, individual book that you will focus on for this subject before moving on to another title, and then you will focus on that one - alone and solitary - until moving onto the next and so on and so on! The order in which you select your materials does not matter for you will have to read and know them all! What does matter is that you are always reviewing _one _title from each and every subject matter!_

_Now get to work! That is to say: LET THE LEARNING BEGIN!_

_Sincerely,_

_Your evil, master villain father and caretaker,_

_Mojo Jojo_

_**Literature and Reading Materials for JoJo Junior's Educational Wellbeing, Betterment in Overall Intelligence and Advancement in Villainous Knowledge:**_

_**Subject: Math**_

Practical Algebra: A Self-Teaching Guide, Second Edition.

Algebra: Practice Problems.

Algebra and Trigonometry: Structure and Method Book.

Pre-calculus: Mathematics of Calculus.

Calculus: Practice Problems

_**Subject: Science**_

Earth Science.

Chemistry.

Advanced Chemistry.

Physics.

Advanced Physics.

_**Subject: History**_

World War One: A History.

World War Two: A History.

Napoleon Bonaparte: A Biography.

Essays in Understanding: Formation, Exile, and Totalitarianism.

The Roman Empire: A History.

Ten Days that Shook the World.

_**Subject: Politics and Governing**_

Politics for Dummies _(I suggest you start with this one. No offense.)_

Essential Readings in World Politics, Second Edition.

The Communist Manifesto.

Democracy- The God That Failed: The Economics and Politics of Monarchy, Democracy and Natural Order.

The Black Book of Communism: Crimes, Terror, Repression

_Son, please note that many of the materials listed here may be somewhat biased, as very few villains have been allowed to publish their works, and most authors believe in this preconceived notion that murder, crime, war and striking fear among the "innocent" is "bad." Do not let it affect the evil within you!_

The note done, I ripped it off and left it on top of the books. I them retreated to my study/work/thinking room. I set to work on her costume. By lunchtime, I had finished the black cape, which was easy, and a dark green shirt with wide sleeves. Also the big boots, which I had already possessed (I can't remember how and why I acquired them, but they proved useful here).

At lunch, I didn't test her, as it was her first day at this. Saying I would test her another time, I just asked her to relate what she had learnt today. Not much on World War I, but some stuff. When she was done, I explained the uses of all these subjects. Math had numerous essentials for any mastermind. Science was a necessity to be considered a true evil genius like myself! History was so one could see where past attempts by conquers and dictators had failed, how wars ended and why, and how to build and learn from these mistakes. And finally, once the Powerpuff Girls were out of the way, Townsville itself would have to be taken, hence the political knowledge.

"Won't you be there to help me, though?" she asked through swallowing some mashed potato.

"I will not always be there," I said, adding nothing else to the conversation. I was worried enough myself about how much longer I would be around. No need yet to have her worrying too.

Once our lunch had been fully consumed as our bodies required energy to work efficiently, I returned to my study. Finishing the belt within minutes, as it was identical to mine except the triangle was colored green, I moved on to the black shirt. It was thick, yet it felt like elastic. It looked like metal armor a little, except with small and fine chains. It reminded me of many a picture of medieval knights I had seen. Once it was done, I grabbed everything and located her napping on her bed.

"What is it?" she said groggily, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. Placing the boots down, I tossed the rest at her. Looking down, she blinked a bit.

"Try it on and tell me when you are finished," I said, turning to leave again. "We must see if everything fits correctly. Oh yes, and wear your black jeans with the outfit." Not wanting to see her naked, I quickly left.

I had only been waiting outside the door for about a minute when she came out abruptly, starling me a little. "How do I look?" she shouted, excited.

It looked perfect. It resembled mine a lot, but suited a teenager more, hence the boots. Of course there was no helmet, but the cape was identical. And it, thankfully, made her seem even more like a guy. Only a few minor traits in the face countered that. Letting a grin sweep my face, I nodded.

"Mirror?" she shouted anxiously. I pointed towards my study. She zoomed off in the direction of it. I followed at what was a snail's pace in comparison.

By the time I arrived there, she was making poses. Most of these were goofy, but some looked rather genuine for a bad guy. If there had been any doubt before, I knew it then. She was on her way to becoming a villain. Readjusting my reading glasses, which I normally reserved for my ship building hobby, I inspected up close.

"Hold your arms out straight out, like this," I motioned. Once she had done so, I examined the cape and found a loose thread. "This needs some adjustment."

"It looks fine!" she said, as though she was in a rush.

"It had some loose thread that needs fixing," I replied, addressing her as stubbornly as she had. "It will only take a moment, so calm yourself down!"

"Can I put my arms down now?" she said, not tired from holding them.

"No. Now hold still. Impatient teenagers..." Sighing, I took a needle and thread and rapidly fixed it. Once I was done, I stepped back, surveying it.

"Can I put my arms down now?" As soon as I nodded, she dropped them faster than I thought was possible, even for her.

"What do you think?" I asked, scratching my head as I thought.

"I love it," she answered. Looking at her, I could see she meant it. I was glad, as I had put many hours into it. A proud look took hold of my face.

"That is because it was made by me – Mojo Jojo! I am the one who designed it and I am the one created it! I was the sole production behind it all! The single mastermind behind its invention!" I laughed a little, looking her over again and nodding. "Now, you are on your way to being a real villain." I grinned, and so did she. I left, but she stayed. Just as I was at the door, I looked back. She seemed so happy and delighted at the day's events, but also with true potential for villainy. She appreciated it and the room just as much as I had wanted to do them. I never thought it would happen, but, for the first time in my life, I felt like I had a... family.

The rest of the day progressed relatively smoothly. Once she had left to get some sleep at night, I decided to notate the day's events in my diary.

"_The Powerpuff Girl, Buttercup, has been in my care for just three days now, and already the road seems clear that this young girl will one day become a great villain. It is very certain that this will happen, and I am very sure of it. I look at this teenager and see it as her fortune-destiny-fate. She possesses every quality, talent, skill, and ability needed to succeed as a villain. Most importantly, she has the desire, want, dream, and craving to be a villain. Yes, it is true that I have agreed to show her the ways of a true mastermind, all-powerful and mighty criminal. Upon adoption, she has also agreed to drop her identity as "Buttercup" and take my name as her own. The name "Buttercup" is no longer hers. Instead, she shall be called "Jojo."_

_Most importantly, I refuse to have a daughter, and so I shall refer to her as my son from this moment forth. For girls, for obvious reasons, drive me to absolute insanity."_

Once that was done with, I shelved the diary and prepared myself for bed. Tomorrow was not going to be that enjoyable, but it didn't mean we wouldn't try to get Junior into the Council.

* * *

><p>November 2nd was the next day. After waking up Junior, we ate, showered and dressed into our villainous costumes. We had left the observatory by eight. Officially, the meetings did not start until ten, but I did not think today would be one of Him's better days, and it would take some time, as we had to walk whilst staying undercover. Then again, the Powerpuffs would be in school, and the police were so dumb, which explained why I was able to break out of prison so easily back in my glory days.<p>

"Why do we have to be there early?" she asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Sometimes the Council's president likes to selectively start meetings early without my presence, and without first warning me. I have a feeling this is one of those days," I growled, remembering too well what had happened.

"Why would Him do that?" she asked, tilting her head at me as we went past the City Dump.

"Let's just say that he does not like me very much nowadays." Yet again, she was endlessly curious.

"Why?" she asked sharply, sounding a bit like Bubbles briefly.

"It is a long story," I sighed. Looking at her, I could tell that she wanted more information then what I had just given her. I sighed, knowing deep down that now was the best moment to tell her, right before the meeting. "I used to be president of the council and then some… _disputes _as to how we functioned as an organization arose. Differences of opinions, arguments, and disagreements, if you will. I wanted to run things a certain way in which Him did not agree with. I preferred this way, and he preferred that way. When the Council had first formed it did not have a president officially. I just sort of assumed the role, for it was my idea to create such an organization. But soon Him demanded an election – an election in which he rigged! Fixed! Manipulated! Cheated! Falsified!" I clenched my fists, the memory feeling like spicy peppers in my throat.

"How'd he do that?" she asked.

"How do you think?" I stated, absentmindedly rolling my eyes. "He messed with everyone's minds! Hypnotized them! Invaded their brains and then manipulated them to think the way he desired them to think! He made every member of the Council vote against what they truly agreed with! Nobody on the Villains' Council really agrees with Him. After all, he's the one who made up that lame rule that keeps us from killing the Powerpuff Girls!"

"What do you mean keeps you from killing the Powerpuff Girls?" She raised an eyebrow in denial and disbelief, and I braced myself.

"We are technically not allowed to kill them," I said. She blinked at me.

"WHAT?" I nodded, looking around to see if anyone had heard. "Why?"

"Well, he lifted the rule about less than a year ago. He made it at first saying that we had to wait until you and your sisters grew up to be 'real challenges.' But once he said we were allowed to use full force against you three, you were simply too powerful for us to destroy even when we tried! I believe he's done this purposely, because he is waiting for the day when we've all failed and given up, and then he – being the most powerful and evil being alive – can destroy the Powerpuff Girls and assume total power of the world.

"You see, my son, this is the reason why I created the Villains' Council. Once one of us destroyed the Powerpuffs, there would only be an internal war between villains over who would gain power and control over Townsville. I created the organization to be an alliance of sorts. An organization of comrades and fellow masters of evil! A group of monsters who all shared the same desire! A brotherhood! My one rule was that whoever succeeded in destroying the Powerpuff Girls would become ruler, and those who had joined the Council would have smaller positions of power reserved for them. That way everyone lived as kings! One would live as a more privileged and more powerful king, but nonetheless everyone would have something! It would have prevented superior evil from lashing out against superior evil! It was an act of avoidance of a civil war and a battle of brothers! If this were to happen, there would be a huge weakness in power and therefore the potential chance of it collapsing. Bad guys would fight against other bad guys, and that would leave an opportunity for the so called "good guys" to take over once again! This was why I created the Villains' Council. We could not have such things happening! We villains must stick together!

"But then Him decided this deal was not good enough for him. Naturally he feared that some other villain would beat him to the prize, as I – Mojo Jojo – had come close to doing so many times. That is when he sought control of the Council. The greedy, red, lobster clawed tutu wearing – GRARGH!" My fists, which had been clenched shut for the past few minutes, were shaken.

"Now, that you have left the Powerpuff Girls, I'm certain he will do everything in his power to restrain you from becoming a villain and a part of the Council. You are a threat. Today, no other villain but he stands a chance at defeating your sisters. But now that you seek to be a villain, he has competition once again. You, my son, can defeat the Powerpuff Girls, and he will not like this. It especially does not help that you are my son, for he naturally doesn't like me very well. Hopefully the Council can overcome his mind tricks and vote you into the organization successfully. But even with your impressive display of villainy yesterday, this will be very difficult. Very difficult indeed."

Finished with what was a long monologue, even by my standards, I returned my attention to where we were going. As we left the road dominated by Townsville cinema, which was largely deserted, I found myself looking at my feet. I wore a sad frown. Chances are Junior would not be accepted as a villain.

Chances are this meeting wasn't going to be very pleasant.

* * *

><p>After some more traveling, we finally reached the place. We snuck down the dark alley until the metal, rusty black door was within reach. Quickly retrieving my key card, I swiped it through the ID box beside the door. Once the green light had blinked, the door creaked open. As soon as we were both through it, it closed itself, the sound of auto-locking following afterwards.<p>

I flipped on the light switch beside the door and then watched Junior for a reaction. She was shocked, to say the least. The place was more like one of those lobbies you find in expensive 5-star hotels. There was red carpeting with floral-patterned wallpaper. Through a doorless entrance from the tiny area we were in was a bigger room, dominated by a mahogany wooden table. The chairs that surrounded it were similar, possessing red cushions and trimmed in gold. While the lack of windows prevented any natural light, big chandeliers hanging from the ceiling kept it well illuminated. Finally, there was a smaller table sporting a blue vase with flowers and a water cooler in the corner by another door. She was even more surprised than I would have thought. Of course, this was the point; should anyone else discover this place, they wouldn't think of connecting it to villainy.

"It is only nine o'clock. Let us take out seats and await everyone's arrival." Traversing our way down the left side of the room, we seated ourselves in the middle, with Fuzzy's blank seat beside me at the top and several others on Junior's other side. I thought hard about what would happen at the meeting. I had only just begun gathering important thoughts when we heard the click from the door again. Looking up, I saw the door opening and a certain auburn-haired teenager approaching.

Princess Morbucks. The only villain on the council that was a minor (notwithstanding the fact that she hadn't done much in the way of villainy in about five years). While she was not my favorite other villain (I would have to say Fuzzy Lumpkins) we did not fight. I can still remember the two occasions when we worked together; once, of course, was to give her Powerpuff powers, while the other time was when she, Fuzzy, Him and I were the Beat-Alls. I had not considered it much, but she was not the same as back then. About five feet, her costume was mostly the same, except her dress showed some of her... never mind. And of course, just like me, she had changed in personality too. While before she had mostly refused to listen unless all the attention was on her, now she was rather tough and annoying in her attitude, knowing what she was, and as if to say: "So?"

By the time I had worked these thoughts out of my system, she was speaking. "I had a feeling I was going to find you here," she began, seating herself beside Junior. Before I could even begin to voice my opinion, she continued, propping her elbows on the table and supporting her face with her hands. "After the news said that you were linked to the chimp here, I figured you'd be tagging along with him and joining the group. They showed some footage of what you did. That's some pretty amazing stuff. Only a truly evil person could cause that much death and destruction. Not just evil, but powerful." She then proceeded to give Junior a slow eyelash flutter. How girly. "Yes, that's a pretty fierce and commanding thing you got going on here." Reaching her hand forward, she brushed a finger lightly along one of Junior's hands. "A death ray, huh? I like it."

"What are you doing here before everyone else?" Junior asked, watching her trace a finger through a scar. By now, I was glaring angrily, although neither had noticed me. She was flirting with Junior, and I did not like it one bit. My low growl caught Junior's attention. Noticing me, she quickly brushed Princess' hand away.

"Same reason you and the chimp are here before everyone else," she replied, fingering with a loose hair strand and leaning back casually.

"Him does not care for Princess very much either," I muttered simply.

Junior turned towards me, then back to Princess. "Why's that?"

Playfully flicking her hair, the little brat smirked. "Because I'm the one who has the guy beat!"

"Oh, please," I whined, tired of her drawing out that fact over and over. "Do not flatter yourself, child."

"I do have him beat! I do!" she protested.

"Do not," I huffed back.

"Do too!" she whined.

"How do you have Him beat?" interrupted Junior, looking at Princess.

"Well," she said, leaning into a certain position so that I could not see her talking. "You know that weird, spooky little mind control thingy he does? You know when he invades your mind and can hypnotize you and stuff?"

"Yeah, what about it?" asked Junior curiously.

"Well," she smiled, grinning a big grin. "He can't do it to me!"

"What?" questioned Junior bizarrely.

"He can't control my mind." By that point, I had had it.

"You make it sound like it is something you have come to perfect over the years," I countered, having tired of her a minute ago. "As if it is some great power you've mastered or even worked for in the slightest. When it is most likely just a result of your utter stubborn and selfish ways."

"Whatever!" she snapped back. "You're just jealous, monkey boy."

"Are you saying Him can't control Princess's mind, because… she's just that stubborn?" said Junior, again in disbelief.

"Well, yes. That is my theory," I finished, folding my arms. Junior watched as Princess reclined in her seat, smiling proudly. So what if Princess was immune to anything Him could do?

Thankfully, this argument continued no further as the door creaked open, everyone else entering. First was the Gangreen Gang. Right behind Arturo was Fuzzy Lumpkins. At the back was Sedusa, with the pathetic Amoeba Boys trailing behind her. I whispered to Junior that the meeting had clearly being scheduled a half hour earlier than we had been told, but her attention was on the entrees. Snake, Arturo, Grubber, Big Billy and Ace took up most of the other side, with Sedusa taking the one seat left beside Ace. Fuzzy squeezed himself into the seat beside me and the Amoeba Boys cuddled together next to Princess, their bodies churning as usual.

"Well, well," drawled a high-pitched voice from behind us, the air noticeably cooling a little. Junior jumped a bit as we both turned to see Him hovering behind us, bending down from above. "Don't you look precious in your new little monkey suit?" He laughed, his voice growing shriller and shriller. Besides Princess and myself, all the others weakly laughed too. Their eyes followed Him directly as he floated to his position at the top. Of course they were nervous. They were afraid of Him, and I would be too.

I then noticed that Junior's hands were glowing. Catching her attention by clearing my throat, I jerked my head at her hands. She recoiled, Him's comment having angered her greatly. Junior breathed heavily over and over, letting out the anger gradually. After about five minutes, they were back to normal. We then focused on the meeting, which Him had begun without us.

"Okey," grunted Arturo in his usual Mexican accent to whatever Him had said that Junior and I had missed. Hesitating briefly, Him continued.

"And that brings us to our next item on today's agenda: It now seems that the Powerpuff Girls have one less member. Oh, yeeees," his voice echoed. "It would appear that the feisty, tomboy Buttercup decided to up and quit the crime-fighting team, leaving only Blossom and Bubbles behind."

"Duh," wondered Big Billy. "Isn't that Buttercup right there?" He stupidly pointed at Junior. Shaking his shades, Ace smacked Billy on the back of his head.

"Who? Thiiis?" Him said sarcastically, motioning towards Junior. Waving a claw, he motioned her into a standing position. If Junior was struggling, it wasn't having any effect. "Why, this isn't Buttercup. This is Mojo's new son. Isn't that right, Mojo?" Gritting my teeth, I glared back at Him as he smiled slyly. Another claw wave and she was floating towards Him.

"Hey! Cut it out!" she protested, flailing as Him placed her beside him. He gripped her face and turned it to him, inspecting it.

"Well, I'd have to agree with you, Billy. This kid does look an awful lot like Buttercup..." He let go of her face but continued to hold her where she was. "Maybe that's because... _she is Buttercup!" _He threw her onto the ground hard, but she stood up instantly, her death ray charging up again.

Before she did something bad against the council, I made my way around Fuzzy, clasping her arm. Keeping as calm as I could, I pulled her behind me. "Buttercup is not who she used to be," I addressed everyone. They actually listened intently, despite being afraid of Him. "She is Buttercup no more. Buttercup is no longer her identity. She is no longer a Powerpuff Girl and now wishes to be a villain. Indeed she has everything it takes to be one, and that is why I have taken her in and have been training her to be evil as my very own son. That is who he is now – my son. I'm sure you've all seen the devastation my new son caused to this city. He did so effortlessly, and without much endeavor. With a simple opening and closing of his fists, Jojo Junior is able to conjure a death ray. A power only a true villain would possess. It is only fair to now vote such a gifted being into our organization. He has true potential, true promise, and the true capabilities that are essential for the makings of a great mastermind of evil. My son has the greatest chance, out of any of us here, to lead us all to total domination of the world. His membership of the Villains' Council is important and, very much indeed, necessary."

"Let's not forget who this Jojo Junior is now," continued Him, facing everyone himself now. "This child was once our enemy, and now we must accept him as a friend? Not only that but a… what? Leader?" Him glared at Junior, and she glared back. "_I don't think so..._" His eyes narrowed to something bordering on slits. "But," he said, turning back to everyone as he changed back to his happy mood. "Let's have a vote, shall we? All in favor of the ex-Puff gaining membership status say 'yes' and all against say 'no.'"

In sequence, the Gangreen Gang and Sedusa all said "no" in a very monotone voice; well, except for Grubber, who just blew a raspberry again.

After the Amoebas had taken their vote, Princess turned her nose to the air, folding her arms. "Yes." For once, I appreciated her power.

"Naw," grunted Fuzzy like the country hillbilly he was. Once I had said yes, Him said no.

"Well, that's that!" laughed Him in triumph. "Membership denied! Oh, I'm so sorry. But don't you worry. You can still tag along with Daddy if you must."

As his laugh continued, she was shaking hard. Her fists were glowing again. She stepped in front of me, finally snapping. "What do you mean? You gotta be kiddin' me! For God's sake the Amoeba Boys are members!_ THE AMOEBA BOYS!_" she screamed, her fists engulfed with even more fire and electricity. Fuzzy drew back, scared, as did most of the others. "_HOW AM _I_ NOT CONSIDERED A VILLAIN BUT _THEY _ARE?_"

"Their hearts are in the right place," said Him, not showing any fear.

"Yeah, our hearts are in the right place," said all three Amoeba Boys.

Junior yelled out in frustration. I said nothing, knowing that this was her battle. "Yeah, well so is mine!" she spat at Him.

"Oh, is it?" drawled Him happily. "Yes, let's have a look, shall we?"

Junior went stiff, her death ray shutting off as her hands dropped to her side. She didn't move at all. Right in front of her, a pitch-black object materialized out of thin air, surrounded by pink flames and beating in sequence. Everyone, even me, gasped at seeing her heart.

"Oh my," Him said melodramatically. "Why, that is black, isn't it?"

"Him, cease this nonsense!" I yelled in, looking at the demon. "You only wish to cause pain to my son! It is nothing but a cruel joke from a cruel man! This is not necessary! Now return his heart to him at once!"

Him paused, raising a claw to his face, pretending to think. Finally, he relented. Raising a claw, the black heart vanished. As soon as it did, Junior fell to her knees, taking in as much air as she could, spluttering and gagging.

"Meeting adjourned," Him hissed. He shrunk up into a puff of pink smoke. Once he was gone, everyone else got up and left. As Junior still caught her breath, Princess elbowed her way past the departing Fuzzy, helping Junior off the ground.

"That good for nothing bastard," she cursed quietly.

"What a jerk!" exclaimed Princess, equally angry.

"What a coward," I grumbled, just as angry as both of them. "Honestly, stooping to such cheap tricks! Such low tactics! Such unfair actions! They say he is immortal, but I bet a death ray will prove that rumor false!"

"Are you okay?" asked Princess, while I continued to shake my fist, suspecting that Him was watching us.

"Yeah," cringed Junior, holding herself as she nodded. Princess must have sympathized, because she placed her hand over Junior's heart. Looking at each other, Princess fluttered her eyelashes again, making Junior blush.

"Oh, brother," I moaned, peeved off even more. Grabbing Junior's sleeve, I dragged her down past the table and into the entrance area. "Come along. We should be going."

"Bye!" shouted Princess. "Umm, maybe I'll come by sometime!"

"Okay!" she shouted back as I opened the door. That'd be, umm, cool!"

"Horny teenagers," I muttered as we left, the door closing behind us. "You must keep your mind focused! Ignore such temptations! Learn some discipline! Self-control! Now is not the time to be distracted by some girl! You have a lot of work ahead of you, especially now that you still have to fight to be a part of the Council!"

"You're reading too much into it," she said casually as we made our way back up the alley. I cast my mind around for something matter-of-fact to say.

"Well," I said, "I am glad to know that you like girls, at least. I was beginning to fear that you might be gay."

"I am," she said, confused.

"Silly child." I shook my head. "When boys like girls that means they are not gay. Do you not know anything?" She rolled her eyes, and I thought of something more sensible to say.

"You do know she's just a gold digger, don't you?" I stated. "Your gold being your villainous potential of someday ruling Townsville and possibly the world."

She laughed shortly at this as we left the alley, heading back towards the observatory. It was only a little bit past ten, but it would probably take us a hour to get back. "Don't worry," she grinned at me. "Don't worry. I won't let her, or anyone else, come between us. I promise." I looked up at her, her genuine smile making my disputed expression fade. Folding my arms, I looked away on the pretext of checking that we were not being followed.

"Very well then," I told her smartly. "But just to prove to me that you are indeed still focused on your training, today's assignment is to write me a full, professionally done essay on how you wish to conquer the world!"

* * *

><p><strong>Glad to see more people are giving this a chance! At first, I was worried that this wouldn't make any sense it you hadn't read Villain, but seeing as two reviewers clearly haven't (and thought the Rowdyruff Boys would be appearing) that makes me breathe freely! Updates may slow down a little as I'm back at school now, but I'll try to update every other week.<strong>


	5. Twenty Four Minutes Past Twelve

TWENTY-FOUR MINUTES PAST TWELVE

_Most of what happened next I was not personally present at, so I will skim over unimportant details. Just then, a knock resonates from the door._

"_Come in," I groan, not bothering to lean over to see who it was that had decided to enter my sanctum at this hour._

_The door opens. Footsteps approach my bed. If I had been feeling better, I would have realized there and then that they did not belong to I thought they belonged to. But alas, old age..._

"_Hey Mojo, sir," says a simian voice. Turning over I see two monkeys standing beside my bed. I recognize them at once._

_One of them is a bonobo, around my height, with a curved body and a chin shaped like a semi-circle. Attached to straps on his back are his signature brass cymbals. Cha-Ching, Cha-Ching._

_The other is an orange proboscis monkey. For once, he did not have a banana in hand, but he looked as cherry as if he did. Like Cha-Ching, he has an outfit identical to mine. Hacha Chacha._

"_Cha-Ching?" He grins genuinely, his square teeth showing. "Hacha?" Hacha smiles too, his gums also exposing his pearly whites. Looking closer, I saw that old age seemed to have affected them significantly too, but not to the same extent as me. "Are... are any of the others here?"_

"_A few,' says Cha-Ching. "Most of them are dead. We're all different monkeys and apes, and some of us don't naturally live as long..."_

"_Fuzzy Lumpkin's kin found us where the Powerpuffs stranded us on a tropical island 16 years ago," says Hacha. "It was just us two, Rocko, Blah-Blah and a few Go-Go Patrol gibbons left." His smile fades away a little. "They brought over a chopper and gave us a lift here, explaining about all this."_

_I nod slowly, laying my head back down. I had never cast huge thought to those guys, but it pained me a little that they had been living in exile for sixteen years. Still, everyone who was on our side was worth it. Several minutes passed in silence._

"_Hey, Hacha, Cha-Ching," I suddenly say. They blink, listening. "Since you're here with me now at this moment in time, would you be interested in hearing the story of how this all came to be?"_

_Their eyes light up like Christmas lights. They grab chairs from the room's corner, pulling them over and sitting down beside my bed._

_I would merely summarize all that I had already recounted to myself. They could hear this again from others, anyway. Where I had left off..._

* * *

><p>The next day, Friday 3rd November, began quietly. Every day this week had had interesting events from the beginning. On Monday, Junior arrived. On Tuesday, we experimented with her new power a little. On Wednesday, she got the letdown on her schedule, and received her costume in villainy. And yesterday, Thursday, the Villains' Council Meeting has transpired.<p>

But today, no events like that were going to happen. Junior was working on some algebra problems I had assigned her – trust me, algebra has it's uses, and not just in villainy – and I had just began to read the paper, when the doorbell rang.

Recoiling a little in my seat, I weighed up the options. It could be Blossom or Bubbles... Then again, they would burst right through like they always did; they wouldn't bother with being polite. Likewise, the cops would probably hammer down the door, they wouldn't bother with being subtle. Even so, I gripped the blaster gun in my belt as I approached the door.

Placing my hand on the door handle, I pulled it open, hoisting myself behind it as I did so, so as to force the attacker to make the first move.

But no one marched in. This surprised me. It also left two possibilities. One, it was someone pranking me, in which case they had chosen the wrong monkey to mess with. Or two, whoever it was meant no harm. Either way, I was ready in case anything went wrong, although I'm sure Junior would help if I couldn't do it alone. I leapt out in front of the open door frame, blaster ready.

It was Princess. Startled, I quickly gestured for her to enter, slamming the door shut once she had crossed. It was unwise to linger outside when most of society is not on your side. That done, I turned to face her.

"Why are you here? For what purpose have you journeyed to my inner sanctum at the current moment in time?" I asked.

"I'm here to see Buttercup..." She hesitated. "Maybe you forgot me saying I might pop over –"

"I remember very well, thank you very much," I snapped back. "And now's not exactly a good time –"

"Let's see whether she agrees with that statement," objected Princess, folding her arms and raising an eyebrow. I made to snap back, but I decided against it. Closing my half-open mouth, I turned to leave the area.

"Wait here," I said as I departed, hearing the clink of her boots.

I arrived at Junior's room to find her working hard on algebra. She looked up as I approached.

"You have a visitor," I grunted against my will. Before she could ask who, I muttered, "Princess."

Faster than the speed of sound, she zoomed past, knocking me over.

By the time I had returned to the main room, she and Princess were staring at each other, smiling nervously. They didn't even notice as I stepped between them, my helmet just below their current eye vision, particularly Junior's. Finally, I cleared my throat, drawing their attention. I looked from Princess to Junior, and back to Princess. "You'll have to visit another time, Junior is not yet finished with his studies for the day. He still has yet to finish his algebra worksheet – an assignment I have given to him and he has yet to return. Therefore, he cannot have any visitors until this task is complete."

"I'm almost done though! I'll be done in like 10 minutes!" I shook my head firmly, and this must have showed more then I intended, because she spluttered in desperation. "Please! I'll finish it! I swear I – I'll do it right now! I –"

"Alright, alright!" I cut into her babble of words throwing up my arms. Princess giggled a little. "Geesh!"

She grinned. "Come on, Princess, my room's over –"

"Stop right there!" I shouted.

"What now?" she asked, turning back.

"Where do you think you are going?"

"My room," she answered. "Don't worry, I'll finish the worksheet –"

"You will do so out here! In the living area! Where I may keep an eye on you two teenagers and therefore see for myself whether you are really on task! Whether you are doing math or other activities! Whether you are truly focused and not up to any foolishness! Whether you are committed to your school work – that being the assignment for today which is the algebra worksheet I assigned you – and nothing but said assignment! You must be where I can see you, so that I may see for myself whether you –" I was snapped out of this monologue by Junior throwing down the algebra worksheets onto the coffee table.

Returning to the reclining chair, I resumed reading the newspaper, although every so often I would lower it to observe Junior's actions. Whenever I did, she was working hard, sitting on the ground, and Princess was just watching.

Once I had reached the end of the front page (ALL DEATHS FROM TUESDAY ACCOUNTED FOR, CITY IN TERROR), I looked over again.

Nothing suspicious, although I did note a second piece of paper next to Princess, with many scribbles on it, some in Junior's handwriting, others in what was obviously hers. Princess noticed me, and shifted her hand so the words were covered. Grunting to myself, I returned to the newspaper.

But a mere minute later, I heard Princess laughing, and then Junior too. I snapped the newspaper down and glared at the two of them.

"Sorry," said Junior, catching me eye and returning to her work. Muttering that she needed to work on her self-control a little, I raised the newspaper back up again.

She finished shortly after, handing me her worksheets. Snatching them I scan-read the answers. They looked good, but her handwriting was rather hard to decipher. "You need to learn to write more legibly," I said irritably.

"Okay. Can we leave now?" she asked again.

I glanced at Princess, who was eying the two of us. Sighing a little, I relented, slowly nodding. As they turned to take their leave, I held up one finger. "Son."

"What?" she asked, curious.

I beckoned her closer so Princess couldn't hear. Once she had hunched near the side of my chair, I whispered into her ear. "I am not ready to be a grandfather, do you understand me?"

She blinked back. It was a few seconds before she could control her mouth enough to fathom a reply. "I can guarantee you, that is not going to happen." Saying nothing else, I returned to reading the newspaper. I vaguely heard her gathering up her working materials and the two of them taking their leave.

I did not see either of them for much of the rest of the day. They were locked up in Junior's room, talking. When lunchtime came, she requested that I bring in the food on a tray. Against all probable odds, I somehow found myself complying with this. While they were having their fun, I began fathoming a way to further attract the attention of Him enough so Junior would be let into the council. Idea followed idea, and soon, they began to weave around each other to form the raw outline of one grand plan. I would work on the details over the next few days.

* * *

><p>"Don't worry."<p>

These were the first words that Junior said that night at dinner. I raised an eyebrow from my food. She ploughed on. "I'm still focused on the Villains' Council. You remember how I made an outburst at my school? Just before I came here?" I nodded slowly. "Well, I'm ready to do it again. Princess and I are gonna go blow up the place!"

This made me do some very quick thinking. On the one hand, she was planning villainy with Princess, someone she hadn't really connected with yet, and not with me, Mojo Jojo, her mentor. On the other hand, this was the first time she would be doing villainy without my assistance. A good step in the right direction.

"So we wanna get there early, ya know? Monday morning at like eight or nine – they'll all be like waking zombies! And then BAM! We hit 'em! Give 'em a wake-up call they ain't never gonna forget!"

"Oh?" I inquired raising my other eyebrow. "So I suppose you'll want excusing from your school lessons that morning?"

"Well... yeah." I stared at her for a while. This was all part of her training, of course. Even when they're successful, villains do not always get their way.

Chewing my steak and swallowing it, I continued. "That's all fine, I suppose. If it is for an evil cause." I scratched my chin a little. "I guess it would be a good warm-up of sorts for what I've been planning for later next week."

"You've been planning something?" she asked, receiving a nod in response. Clearly, she still loved destruction. Which was alright, but destruction was only necessary on some occasionally. Otherwise, quite unnecessary. "What?"

I smirked. Testing her was fun. "You will know with enough time," I said.

"Aww, come on!" she whined. "What is it? Will it give me a chance to fight with my sisters again? Is it something that might get me into the council?"

I shook my head, still grinning. "I will reveal it to you when I have everything sorted out. Portions of my plot are not yet clear to even me yet; therefore, I cannot possibly reveal it to you. So for now it is a secret that only I know. You will not know, until I want you to know. So do not ask, for you will know of what I plan I am ready to reveal what it is I plan." I stood up, gathering the dishes and sweeping from the room to the kitchen. She followed. I deposited them in the sink, and she scrubbed them rapidly. "Go on. You have fun with your little childish games of chaos and revenge on Monday. After which, I should have everything in preparation for your next deed of destruction."

* * *

><p>The next two days passed without great event, unless you count Junior and Princess spending most of the time alone in Junior's inner sanctum. It barley bothered me, as I was spending most of the time working away at the grand plan in my inner sanctum, but I could not help glaring at Princess whenever our eyes connected. Normally this merited a similar response, but on one occasion she delivered some rather colorful language. Charming.<p>

On Sunday night, before Junior was going to have her fun, I was sitting in my bed, updating my diary. She had gone to bed as soon as dinner was done, for her rest, of course. Pausing briefly, I placed pen to paper and wrote:

_Junior's studies are coming along just great. He is gaining the knowledge required to achieve his goal. He has even provided good analysis on how to achieve it; I glanced at his and Princess' plans for the school while he was showering. They are detailed, taking in many facets and blocking out flaws that might otherwise be present, even the presence of the Powerpuff Girls. Once he has done what he aspires to do tomorrow, we can move on to my grand master plan, which is almost nearing total –_

"Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!"

I froze, the point of the pen hovering a mere inch above the page.

"SHUT UP!" said the voice again.

This time, not only could I hear that this voice was coming from inside the observatory, but I could also hear the sickly buzzing sound that always accompanied Junior's Death Ray.

"NO! SHUT UP!"

Sending the pen and diary flying, I bolted from my bed. Flinging my bedroom door open, I sprinted across the main room, towards the corridor that lead to her room. I could see green light radiating through the underside of her door. Just as I grabbed the doorknob, I heard the voice again – her voice.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UUUUP!" Bracing myself, I entered.

At first, I couldn't make out much, as my vision was blinded so suddenly by the luminescent green light. Then I saw that it had blasted down a huge chunk of the wall – the exact same one from before, I might add – and was obliterating a mile's worth of civilization. Except there was nothing to vanquish. Everything living there had already been exterminated, so the only result was that Junior's strength would fade for nothing.

Junior. I finally saw that she was pinned up against the opposite wall, above her bed, with her arms directed right in front of her, producing the ray. There was nothing else in the room. Nobody who might have provoked her into using the ray at all.

"Junior! Stop, Stop, Stop!" But my yells were fruitless, for I could almost see the pain affecting her as the ray continued. Now she was screaming. The green ray around her hands cackled with fire, which was so hot I could feel it from here. Tears fell from her eyes as her whole body, but particularly her eyes, wobbled weakly. The tears were evaporating from the heat of the waves. I didn't dare approach. Not until the ray stopped. It seemed to go on forever.

Finally, it stopped. As the green light faded away and the sound that it conjured stopped, she fell into a heap on to her mattress, face first. She didn't move, not one bit. The ray had drained her so much, that she might have been dead, were it not for the sobs I could hear, muffled by her mattress.

"What is the meaning of this?" I yelled, approaching now that the worst of the danger was over. The wind from outside rustled my aging fur. "What have you done? Are you mad? Are you insane? Psychotic? Out of your mind? Blowing up my home in the mid of night – what is wrong with you? Get up!"

"I can't." Her voice was even less than a whisper, enhanced only by the wind. With some difficulty, I pushed her over onto her back. She looked a lot worse this side up. The scars on her arms stood out even more against her face, which trembled in so many ways, as she wailed in agony, returning to crying afterwards. She looked like she was ready to go to the gallows.

"What is the matter with you?" I demanded. Lifting her arm, I watched as it fell limply down again. While she sobbed, I stared. Something stirred within me. Was it sympathy?

_You just gotta believe in yourself._

"Are you in pain?" I said finally. She sobbed for a while before replying.

"YES!" she screamed. I left instantly. In the bathroom, I grabbed a towel, filled a glass with water, and swiped a bottle of pills from the cabinet.

Upon returning, I found her in the same position, moaning. "Sit up."

"I can't," came the wreak that was her voice. "I can't move."

"Have you tried?"

"YES." Placing the items on the nightstand, I hoisted myself onto her bed. Dragging her body over so that she lay vertically, I pushed her up, propped against the bed's head. Detracting one pill from the bottle, I placed it on her tongue, which was barely able to support it.

"Swallow." She did, but coughing and choking resonated, forcing me to briefly wait for it to subside. "Did you swallow it?"

"Yes," she answered, her voice still shaking.

"One more." Feeding her another pill, I then pulled on her feet so she slid back down into a lying position. Absorbing what water was left into the hand-towel, I used it to wipe away the sweat and tears from her face. While I did so, her cried of pain started to fade, becoming more controlled. "Now, what exactly happened?" I asked as I finished, placing aside the hand-towel.

"I dunno," she answered, still weakened. "I – I had a dream –"

"All this because of a nightmare? Junior, you should be braver than –"

"No," she muttered, wincing. I paused. "Him was there. He... he was r–really th–there."

I didn't know what to say to this. I was angry that Him had the nerve to even attempt to upstage Junior or me. But right now, the biggest concern was Junior's physical and mental well-being. "You did not listen to anything he had to say, did you?"

"I–I–I tried." I sighed, but in all honesty I had not expected any better. If she had succeeded fully, our home wouldn't have been damaged again.

"Then what did he have to say?"

"He s–said that I should join him, 'cause y–you were just using me..."

I scowled. The nerve of that demon! "And what is it that he was trying to do? 'Join me!' What does he call that? The nerve of Him! The impudence! How dare he! How –"

"It's n–not t–true, is it, M–Mojo?"

I blinked. I had no words at first. In all honesty, I had debated with myself whether I was using her. I was unsure. I had given her the room, and the costume. But I did want the same goal, and for all my life I had wanted to destroy her – or for most of it anyway.

Finally, I sat down beside her, looking her straight in the eye. "Son, it is not I who will destroy the Powerpuff Girls. It is you. You are the one with the power. You are the one with the strength – the might. I cannot imitate what is yours and yours alone. Nor can I claim full responsibility and credit for what is yours. All I can hope for is that in your victory speech after world domination, you say a simple 'Thank you, Father!' …and… perhaps award me a little country of my very own to rule."

Somehow, she cracked a smile at this. "I'll give you a continent."

I smiled myself, before I put on a serious look. "Not Antarctica."

"Okay." She smiled a little again. For a while, there was quiet, save for the wind rustling in the dead of night. "I–I knew Him was just lying to me," she said suddenly. "That's when I got angry and –" She cringed, struggling to remember. "He got scared when he saw all that green light. I–I saw it in his face." I grinned at this. Him wasn't so brave now, was he?

"Coward," I laughed.

* * *

><p>I stayed with Junior all night, comforting her. She was still very weak, but eventually she dozed off to a well-deserved sleep.<p>

By next morning, she was in a little better shape. She managed to sit herself up, but she had to support herself against the wall to stay up. I made her breakfast in bread, along with regular painkillers. Just as I had given her the tray, the doorbell rang. Knowing who it was, I journeyed the lengthy walk to the door, opening it without hesitation. There stood Princess.

"I am afraid, my little one," I began, with the result that she towered over me even more, despite being only five feet, "that you and Junior will no longer be able to attack the school today.

"What? Why?"

I sighed, not willing to explain. I did anyway. "He suffered a nightmare which Him caused, and drained himself of energy using his death ray –"

She shot past me, knocking me down yet again. Despite running as fast as I could, she beat me to Junior's room easily. I entered to see Princess with her arms around Junior, who muttered something I couldn't hear.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" repeated Princess, letting go and sitting down beside her, patting her head. "I'm sorry!"

"It's okay," said Junior, still strained. "Just... try not to touch me, alright?"

"Okay." Princess retracted her hands. By now, I had reached them. Ordinarily, I would have objected to Princess, but I knew I had no say in her simply staying here. Picking up the spoon, I lowered it to the plate of scrambled eggs, but it was suddenly snatched from my hand. "I'll do it!" she said, stuffing some into Junior's mouth. By the time my evil glare was visible, Princess was force-feeding Junior another mouthful.

"You're going to make him choke!" I vented, grabbing the spoon from the obnoxious auburn-haired teenager. She stared back in disbelief. I pressed on. "Why don't you make yourself useful, and return home to your mansion? There, we can be sure that you don't cause Junior anymore harm."

Princess gasped, almost falling backwards onto Junior. "What are you saying? That I don't know what's good for my own girlfriend?"

My anger at Him enlarged, not directed at someone else. They had barely been like this for any time, only four days! And I wouldn't allow it either. "You are not his girlfriend and he is not your boyfriend!"

"That's right, because she's my girlfriend! When are you going to get it through your thick skull old man? She's a girl!"

"OLD MAN?" I repeated, by arms shaking rigidly.

"That's right," retorted Princess. "Old. Man." To further prove the point, obviously intending to add insult, she stuck her tongue out.

That did it. "THAT IS AGEISM!" I yelled hoarsely at the top of my lungs. "And one more thing: I'm not a man, I'm a monkey, there's a difference!"

* * *

><p><strong>Quite a twist in this chapter's prologue, eh? In all sense, they're the most fun scenes for me to write, as, thus far, there are very few relevant scenes that are totally new. But due to the story's nature, there will be more in future chapters. You'll see.<strong>**  
><strong>


	6. Five To One

FIVE TO ONE

"_Why... WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING?" I yell as hoarsely as I can. Once I had managed to stifle the resulting coughing fit, I look back up to see that neither Cha-Ching nor Hacha had ceased their mega chuckling. On the contrary, both monkeys are rolling on the floor laughing. Cha-Ching kept banging his cymbals together, while Hacha kept fumbling with a banana peel underneath him. After a while, where I impatiently tap my fingers on the bed, they both stand up and seat themselves back down in their seats._

"_Sorry sir," mumbles Cha-Ching. "It was pretty funny when we heard it."_

"_Yeah," chimes in Hacha, smiling. "I can't believe you actually said that!"_

"_And what line of dialogue might you be referring to?" I inquire, fearing the answer. "I did not see a lot funny about those events."_

"_You saying you weren't ready to be a granddad!" grins Cha-Ching again, Hacha laughing beside him. "I mean, I too would much prefer a son to a daughter, who wouldn't? But you do know that since it was Princess on the other side of the pairing, that it's actually impossible for them to –"_

"_Yes, I know. Let's just say it was a spur of the moment and leave it at that, shall we? Besides, the tone of that last scene, the nightmare one, well, it's like that for the rest of the story."_

_Cha-Ching and Hacha gape in surprise. "Do you mean to say," begins Hacha, "that you stopped calling Buttercup a boy?"_

"_He is a boy!" I yell, coughing a bit afterwards. What part of that was everyone other then myself unable to accept? "And his name is Jojo Junior. Although soon it may be just Jojo..."_

_Silence. Cha-Ching fumbles a bit in seat before he leans closer, as though Junior might hear. "Are you afraid that... you're gonna die, sir?"_

"_I'm afraid it's inevitable at this point, my good bonobo. I'll last until morning if I'm lucky." At this point, Hacha squirms a little. Despite having had to deal with it frequently, considering all of the other monkeys had shortened life spans due to Chemical X, it did not seem he was yet comfortable with death. "But while you're still here, care to hear the rest of the story?"_

_They freeze briefly. Hacha exchanges confused glances with Cha-Ching before speaking up. "Are... are you sure, sir? We don't want to waste your last few hours..."_

"_Its fine, I was going over all this anyway before you arrived," I say. "And saying it out loud has it benefits..."_

"_So Junior did manage to blow up the school?" queries Hacha curiously._

"_Now now, my good proboscis monkey, let's not jump to conclusions." I say calmly. "Even if they are true..." I mutter to myself._

* * *

><p>Over the course of the day, Junior's strength slowly recovered. She was still throbbing with pain all over, but she could move herself a bit and talk almost regularly, although walking was not yet attainable. Princess stayed for as long as she could, and whenever Junior almost fell asleep, Princess's presence prevented that from fully taking place. I eventually managed to shake her off at dusk. Once she was gone, I told Junior that at least one more day must pass before she and Princess could proceed with their stab of villainy. She agreed, mumbling something about her strength coming back once they actually got around to doing it. I knew that, of course, but she needed to rest enough so that she could manage her plan. It was good, but she would fail without question if she couldn't even walk, let alone fly.<p>

For most of Tuesday, Princess actually didn't show up. It wasn't until later in the evening that she did appear, and not for very long. By the time she had left again, Junior was able to walk, float, eat and even shower, though she still seemed a little weakened. I only gave her good luck for tomorrow, and said that I would tell her more about my big plan later. I had somehow managed to find time to work on it while tending to Junior over the last few days. It was the first kink in a much bigger plan. A much bigger plan indeed...

By next morning, Junior was up before I was. And she was walking fine. I grinned at this, knowing she should have little trouble today. Adding butter to this bread was that she had prepared breakfast not just for herself, but for me too. If I remember correctly, and I very much doubt I am mistaken, this is the first time since the C-X incident that anyone had made food for me. I had always had to salvage it, or occasionally purchase and they prepare it. But never before had anyone else ever gone to the trouble of getting grub ready for me. That is mostly because I had not bonded with anyone in 11 years. But I was now. There were three pancakes with syrup. I noticed that they were burnt a bit; clearly the result of prolonged laser eyes. But that didn't make me appreciate them less; if anything, it made me appreciate them more, that she had gone to the trouble, despite what had happened less than three days ago.

She watched intently as I sat down in front of the pancakes. Her eyes followed my hand as it gripped the top pancake and placed it between my jaws. Her pupils wobbled in time with my crunching of the pancake, until I finally swallowed it. The seconds that passed were perhaps some of the funniest I have ever seen, her whole face trembling impatiently for my reaction. I decided not to say anything initially. We were both waiting for the other to say something, although it was not a staring contest in the least.

"Uh..." she stammered, tapping her fingers along the scar on her other hand. I could almost see the cogs deciding not to ask what I thought of it directly. "I was thinking yesterday, and I realized that I hadn't thanked you properly for making me this costume, or for trying so hard to get me into the Villains' Council... and for taking care of me after that nightmare." That was enough of an answer for me, but she said a little more. "So, thanks, D–Mojo."

Before I could answer properly, the doorbell rang. Junior rose from her seat rapidly, but I motioned for her to wait for a moment. She lowered herself back down, curious.

"Just remember," I began, "that we're in this together. Don't ever let that chance, modify, or otherwise alter anything."

She smirked a little. Before I knew what she was doing, she had me in a soft embrace. It was over before I knew what had happened, but I'll never forget how I felt then.

I vaguely heard Junior opening the door and letting Princess in, but it didn't really register, along with them moving off into another room. In what could have been anything from a minute to a half-hour, for I was still a little stunned, they were back. While Princess hovered awkwardly in the doorway, Junior approached.

"Mojo?" she said. I turned my head, the rest of my body not moving from the same position that it had been in when she had presented upon my person that hug. "I'm off now..."

Somehow, I managed to stand up, and face her. It struck me freshly how much bigger she was, since that was not as noticeable when she had stayed in bed the last two and a half days. I held out my hand. Briefly startled, she took my hand, and shook it, grinning.

"Good luck," I said, clapping her on her arm, because I couldn't reach her shoulder. She departed with Princess, who gave me a curt not that I did not return completely, yet which I acknowledged nonetheless.

And then they were gone. In thought, I sat back down, and ate the remaining two pancakes, subconsciously noticing that they had cooled down enough to be at normal temperature.

* * *

><p>Only an hour later, I was in my room, working on my grand master plan. It was practically completed, and I would be able to inform Junior about it later this evening.<p>

It was hard to judge accurately, but they were probably already finished with their spell of fun. The news would probably have something this evening about the event, actually. Unless... what if it had gone wrong? What if Blossom and Bubbles had defeated Junior and Princess, and taken them away?

Right on cue, the observatory's front door slammed open. As I was in my study, it did not resonate that loudly, but I still heard the sound. Gripping my blaster, I pressed myself against the wall next to the door, as someone's footsteps approached on the other side. No, wait – they were floating! This meant it was either Blossom and Bubbles, or –

Junior burst through the door, located me, held me in the air in a cute, tighter embrace. When she finally let go of me, I registered that we were on the living room couch. She flopped down beside me, acting child-like in an innocent way. Recovering from the bounce's effect, I turned to face her.

"What is the meaning of –" I was interrupted when she grasped my hand, shaking it so hard again that it continued to vibrate heavily for several seconds after she let go.

"It went perfectly, Mojo!" She grinned, her teeth showing midway through the phrase. I made to interrupt, but she cut over me. "Wanna hear it?"

For a split-second, I considered saying that I would rather wait until the news stations said something about it later. But that thought faded as soon as I looked into her eyes. Despite the scars, there was something being communicated through them... something bordering on cuteness. I nodded.

"All right!" she smirked happily. She reclined back on her end, resting one leg over the other, before she began.

"We got there without any trouble. Princess headed to the cafeteria, to cause the distraction. When we were younger, we made an evacuation procedure. And if there was an attack around there, the students and staff would proceed to the other side of the building, to the gym.

"I wasn't waiting long. Soon enough, I could hear them scurrying, and minor explosions, and my sisters yelling 'Not so fast, Princess!' So then I started charging my death ray again. It pained quickly, but it wasn't anything I couldn't bear.

"I blasted down the red door, trapping a teacher underneath it. As he bled, they panicked. Two tried to run past me, but I used my laser eyes on the ceiling, and the rubble sealed the exit. As I stepped forward, they trembled, flinching. When I spoke to them, they recoiled.

"Some of the stupid ones started to make towards the other doors. I let them almost escape before I used my ray. Although it only hit about a dozen people, it was enough to make them retreat. Then I noticed the trapped teacher. His jaw was snapped from his face. I taunted him for a little while, waiting until I could see his eyes begging for death, before I killed him." Her face was grinning as she spoke, clearly relishing in her committed actions.

"Then Blossom and Bubbles appeared, Princess captured. Once she was out of their grip and safe beside me, I relished in their shock before zapping Blossom just enough to knock her out of my path to everyone else. Bubbles rushed to her aid, and Princess stood safe behind me.

"And then I did it. I killed every last one of them. My death ray ensured not a single one lived. Their screams reduced to nothing as I absorbed their life energy, and my ray expanded enough to hit everyone. All the while, Blossom and Bubbles were yelling for me to stop, crying the names of their friends and teachers. Princess and I laughed. Blossom almost tried to rush over to us, but Bubbles kept her down." She breathed heavily. Her face had been really concentrated for that containment of information.

"And then it was over. Only the two puffs, Princess and I were still living. Stopping the ray, I saw their expressions. Blossom was examining all the dead bodies. Bubbles was asking me why she did what she did. I knew they weren't going to fight me today, so I started to take me leave. Bubbles spoke.

"She said I did a bad thing, as thought it was as simple as that. She then said that I could still come home, but Blossom cut across her.

"The annoying brat said I couldn't come home, ever. She turned to me, and I could see the hate glowing in her eyes. She screamed at me: 'You're horrible! Get out of here! Just get out!'

"I didn't react for a few seconds. I knew the next time we met, it would be war. Leaving her and Bubbles to mourn over everyone, Princess and I left."

There was silence. Junior slowly put both of her feet back down and sat up, looking at me, waiting for my reaction.

"Good job," I said, leaning over and clapping her on the back. Then, remembering the image I needed to keep up for her training, I changed my mood. "Now what are you still doing here? Get back to your studies! I'll have some news for you when you're done."

Joey laughed, and I chuckled a little too, before she zoomed from the room, clubbing me lightly, yet painfully, over the head as she left.

* * *

><p>My plan was a simple, yet also brilliant one, if I do say so myself. On Saturday, there would be a 'special' parade for Townsville's Mayor, who was turning seventy. We would break up the celebrations. This was merely the first installment of a much larger plan, however. From here on in, we would need to be on our toes. Thus far, we had been working mostly from the shadows, coming out only to do the fieldwork. After this... well, it we successfully installed enough fear, Townsville would be ours.<p>

I could tell she was rather infuriated that only minimal destruction and a few loose killings would be committed at the place. Of course, there was no point killing all the people you wanted to rule; where would the slave force be then? Once the whole screwed city... town, village, whatever, knew of our intentions, we would remind them that this was their own doing, casting us out, and that they could choose to continue to resist and start a war, or surrender and live, mostly the same way, actually.

Killing was only necessary when they did not comply with your wishes. And she would be the one to do the majority of the talking, not me. This was her fate, not mine.

Fate is a strange thing. When you tried to avoid fate you didn't want to happen, it was that which caused it to happen anyway. And those who tried to screw destiny either succeeded or failed. Patience was the key. If you wait, and don't rush fate, it'll do its job.

We were not completely dark. They think that villains are just that, mindless beings bent on destruction. So? The Romans conquered many ancient civilizations, and their empire proved very prosperous, lasting for 500 years as a Republic, and another 500 as an Empire. It wasn't as though we intended to make some sort of Metropolis-like factory or anything. Life could continue the same. The only major change was that no one would be treated any worse just because they were different. No two people, monkeys, fish, lizards or even insects were the same, so why should some be treated as freaks? I don't think that question will ever have a solid, definable answer.

* * *

><p>"Do you think I'm supposed to be a villain, Mojo?"<p>

It was Friday night. We were sipping wine and watching a preview of the parade on the TV; there would be a tribute to all the dead kids there.

I had thought she had been pondering over this topic since Wednesday's events. The way that she listened to the plan, the way that she was even as Princess visited on one occasion. It was a little subdued. Not like she was having second thoughts or anything, just that something had been on her mind. Muting the television, I turned sideways to look at her. "What do you mean by that?"

Joey shrugged, at a loss for adequate words. "I dunno. I was just thinking... what if this isn't what's right for me?" I blinked in surprise. Reacting a little, she pressed on. "Not that I don't want to be a villain. It's just... I dunno. Well... do you think I'll be good at it?"

I was briefly rendered silent. Avoiding awkwardness, I dunked down the whole wine glass, staring at her through the glass. "You will be fine at it. Why do you doubt yourself now?"

"I dunno," muttered Joey quietly. "It just sorta hit me that like… this ain't gonna be easy. I mean, I wanna destroy the Powerpuff Girls and everything – believe me, I really do. And I know I can do it. I know I can. I won't let myself fail at that. But like… our whole plan to take over the world after that… what happens if I can't do it, Mojo?"

I nodded slowly in understanding. Every villain went through this, some more so. Heck, everyone went through this, even fiction writers! "Failure is something to be feared in every profession. Some have more to fear than others. You have least to fear as a villain. You have the talent and the power. You are, by far, one of the best in the business. You can command others, for you have the right tools to do so; you only must now learn how to use them properly. You will be able to succeed, and you will do so with greater ease than any other villain I know." I nodded more firmly. "I have faith in you."

She surpassed a small smile, trembling. "I think I can take over Townsville alright. It's just the rest of the world that I'm worried about. Townsville versus me I think is a battle I can win. I guess it might be tough, but I know I can do it. I know what my sisters are capable of and everything. But the whole world against me?" She gave an involuntary shudder. "Even without superpowers, if the world were to band together, I'd be dead."

I gave a short laugh. It was both more complicated and simpler then that, of course. "Do not worry. That will never happen. As I've said: Step one is to install fear. When the world believes itself to be in a scarce situation, they will take the aid that is given to them both freely and necessarily. It will be a matter of survival, and as stupid as the world is, they will not reject their only hope and option that will allow them to continue living their pathetic lives. And their only option will be you. They will be compelled to choose, and you will be their only choice. You will be their hope and they will view you as a savior– rescuer–liberator! A blessing, rather than recognizing that it is you who has forced them to select you as their leader. Because people are simple. People are dumb. People are egoistic. People are selfish! Self-interested! Self-centered! They are told what and how to think and will think just as you tell them just so long as you promise that it will benefit them personally. It is simple politics. The world is already doing it today! We shall only take it to a new, more exclusive level! Do not worry, my son, you will succeed in this. At first, it will be difficult, but soon enough, by the mere and simple state of nature of mankind, any initial resistance against you will simply diminish, weaken, disappear and be no more."

"But I won't be able to do all that without you there helping me," she said, frowning. "You keep saying that this is my fate or whatever, but you're the one telling me what to do and how to achieve all this stuff. Is it really me that's supposed to do this? Can't it be you and I just help out with all the beatings and killings and stuff?"

"You will do fine. I have told you already. Ultimately, it will be you who rules this world. Not me. I can see it. Him sees it. I'm certain your pathetic sisters now see it. Tomorrow, Townsville will definitely see it." I paused to sigh and lower my head, giving Joey a serious look. She drew back, mildly intimidated. "I tell you this is your fate, because that is exactly what it is. Everyone that knows your story will be able to tell this about you. You began life with all that is needed to be a villain. Your life experiences have only shaped and perfected the gifts you were given at your creation and have pushed you further down the path to what is now your destiny. You will change this world for the better. It is your fortune."

"But how can you be so sure?" asked Joey as I stood up, taking her glass and patting her on the shoulder as I departed.

"Just consider it a sixth sense I have acquired with old age," I said back.

* * *

><p>Saturday came. To say I was excited would be an understatement. I was more ecstatic then a frog eying up a grasshopper perched up on a lily pad. For once this was done, everything else would fall into place perfectly. As long as no hiccups occurred, of course.<p>

I checked my watch. 08:56. In four minutes the parade would start. Joey was waiting from on top of a nearby building, while I hid behind an alleyway around the corner from the parade, jetpack and blasters ready just in case. Not only was half of Townsville here, but it was been broadcast to every Townsville station, so the whole city would see this. Once it had started, I would interrupt it, Mojo-style, declaring Joey as Townsville's newest, and greatest, villain. Joey would cause some minor damage, defeat the Powerpuffs when they arrived, only maiming them, of course. Then we would leave with the final word of not spilling a drop of blood as long as no one tried to stop us. This was less to let the city know about Joey, since most of them already did, but more to show them that no one, not even the Powerpuffs, would be able to stop us.

I checked my watch again. 08:58. It was almost time. I looked around the corner to see the Powerpuffs floating into the air. Strange... Following their gaze, I saw that, directly above the building they were looking at, hovered Joey, looking down at something I couldn't see.

"Not so fast!" yelled out the two Powerpuffs suddenly, Blossom with a lot of anger behind her voice, Bubbles with noticeably less. Joey floated back down onto the building, out of both the crowd's and my field of vision. Leaning back around the building corner, I rapidly started up my jetpack, gripping my blasters. I knew that I stood no chance against the Powerpuffs, but what choice did I have? I trusted Joey. She wouldn't slip up hugely like that, not on her own whim anyway. There had to be a logical cause. As I zoomed around the outer buildings, I heard more speaking.

"What the hell is that?" Joey said, angrily. "You already giving up and borrowing shit from the army or something?"

A brief pause, followed by Blossom speaking up. "If it were up to me, you'd already be dead."

"Wow. A little harsh, don't ya think, Sis?" By now, I was on the other side of the building that they were on top of. I pressed myself against the wall, listening hard.

"Buttercup," cried out Bubbles suddenly, pleading. "Please just come home with us!"

"Not a chance!" responded Joey angrily. There was a certain something about the way she said that sentence, though. Almost like... fear? All of a sudden, the sizzling sound of Joey's death ray stopped. I began sweating in panic. That couldn't be good...

"Have it your way," remarked Blossom's voice, before I heard something being tossed, and then, a large puffing sound.

Black smoke suddenly spread out from the building's top. I recoiled as it enlarged like a cloud, while the two Powerpuffs floated into the air, out of its range. There was no sign at all of Joey. I zoomed just far away enough so that the cloud couldn't reach me, though it came pretty close.

It was something resembling knockout gas, that much I could tell. Blossom's dialogue made me sure that they did not plan to kill Joey – yet. Rapidly, I knew what I had to do. If I could just get Joey away from the Powerpuffs safely, then not all would be lost.

Almost as soon at the gas had started, it stopped. As it vanished into nothing, I floated up, forgetting about the Powerpuff Girls. I came level with the building's grim roof.

Joey was lying there, out cold against the flat cement. She was still coughing faintly. I hovered over, touching down on the roof, though I didn't turn off my jetpack. Placing my blasters back in my belt, I pulled her over to face me. She looked the worse for wear, her face pale and her muscles weak right now.

I knew it then. I was her father. It had nothing to do with any theories regarding Chemical X, or that I pushed it in or anything like that at all. It wasn't even just my habit of calling her son. I just knew it. There was no other way I would have been so trusting of her so quickly, or so caring. You'd know your offspring even if he or she was wearing an absolutely perfect disguise, right? Well, I knew it the same way here. No doubt about it, she was definitely my –

"Mojo!" cried out two voices suddenly. In all my haste, I had forgotten about Blossom and Bubbles. Turning around, I saw that they were both standing there, both of them angry. Blossom, however, was looking at Joey, while Bubbles had her glares directed at me.

"You've got some nerve," I said quietly, standing up to face them, shielding Joey. "Some audacity, impudence, effrontery, guts, cheek! Instead of facing Junior head on, you resorted to such cheap tactics as poisoning him!"

"It's just knockout gas," snapped Blossom. Bubbles titled her head in confusion, probably at my referring to Joey as a guy. "And we'll be taking her off of you now."

"You'll do no such thing!" I said. Pulling a special wire out of my belt, I attached one end to my own belt, and the other end to Joey's. "Now leave, or pay the price."

"Oh, Mojo," giggled Bubbles, shaking her head, "you still have much to learn. You and what army?"

"I don't know about an army," interrupted a voice, "but you'll have to get through me as well." Before Blossom, Bubbles or myself could see who it was, Princess floated over the building's roof and landed beside me, jetpack and blasters ready. "I saw what you did," she spat at Blossom and Bubbles.

"How did you get here so quickly?" I questioned. It hadn't even been a minute since Blossom had rendered Joey unconscious. "Your mansion's halfway across town!"

"I was here anyway, monkey boy," she commented coolly, stepping in front of me and Joey, towards. "You'd think I was gonna miss the potential destruction?" Ordinarily, I would have detested that she was here too, but with her here, I had a better chance.

"Do you think you can hold them off?" I questioned, placing one foot on the edge of the dirty roof. "Which is to say, do you consider yourself adequate enough to keep them busy temporarily while I flee to another location, considering that they beat you rather easily only three days previously –"

"Go!" she barked out suddenly. Whipping out her two golden blasters, she promptly squeezed the triggers. I didn't bother to stay to watch the two rays hit Blossom and Bubbles, although I knew that they had hit their marks from the sharp yelps of pain. Supporting Joey's weight under one of my arms, I took off from the grimy building's top.

I hadn't flown more than about three blocks, however, before I heard the familiar zoom meaning the Powerpuffs, or at least one of them, was on my tail. Turning around, I saw a streak of blue coming my way. Back at the building, Blossom and Princess were still exchanging energy rays, which were all I could all make out. So Bubbles had decided to leave Blossom to fight Princess, and come after me herself.

Speaking of which, she was coming right for me! I did a rapid back-flip in midair. Just in time too – it meant she only hit Joey's cape, knocking it into my face. By the time I had smacked it out of my facial hair, Bubbles was floating across from me. Unlike before, this time she looked angrier then Fuzzy when he couldn't find his banjo.

"Why, Mojo?" she yelled out at me suddenly. I actually recoiled slightly, her anger was that great. "Why have you brainwashed Buttercup?"

"I have done nothing of the sort!" Glancing out of the corner of my eye, I saw that the catfight back at the building seemed to be tipped in Blossom's favor. I gulped nervously, looking back at Bubbles. Time was not on my side, so stalling Bubbles with words, however tempting it was, was not an option. "As Junior told you himself, you two are the true cause of the events that have transpired these past two weeks."

"You're..." Bubbles vibrated her fists as she looked for words to say. "You're lying! Buttercup's not responsible for any of this, and neither are we! You're the true catalyst here!"

"Your laces are also untied," I remarked quietly.

"Huh?" said Bubbles in confusion, looking down.

"Sucker Ray Attack!" I yelled out, whipping out two blasters. Setting one to stun and leaving the other on standard, I fired them both, catching Bubbles off guard. While it didn't send her spiraling towards the ground, it did make her keel over backwards, by which time I had zoomed past her. While powerful, that stun ray would not be permanent; Bubbles would regain herself in about 30 seconds. Lowering my flight path, I flew down a minor side street, and veered left.

There it was! Townsville Central Park was at the end of the road, with my observatory in the middle of it. Once inside, I could revive Joey within seconds, for there were many such things that would easily counter unconsciousness. I blasted down the road as fast as my high-tech jetpack would allow. I was already halfway there –

When something pink, fast and heavy rammed me from behind. Before I could do anything else about it, Blossom had sent two laser eyes at my jetpack, blowing it into smithereens.

With Joey's added weight, we lost height instantly, falling towards the ground without hesitation. Clearly, Princess had not been able to provide too big a threat for Blossom. Speak of the devil – she flew in, grabbing Joey around the waist. Not even acknowledging my existence, she turned around and began soaring back towards Townsville Hall.

I fingered with my blasters, but I knew such an option was pointless; hitting her would only make us fall to the ground, rendering me even less capable to successfully getting away. There truly seemed to be no way out of this predicament...

When Blossom was promptly rammed herself, catching her off guard. As she turned around, forcing me to swivel around and she still had Joey in her grip, I too saw Princess floating there in front of us. Despite a few scratches and two burns, she was mostly okay, still having all her weapons and her jetpack. Blossom must have only subdued her briefly and left her behind, thinking she would be too weak to return to the fight. For once, I was glad she was wrong.

Hoping Princess would use her common sense when she saw what I was about to do, I pulled out the blaster that was set at standard, pointed it at Blossom, and clicked the trigger. As I hoped, she recoiled backwards, dropping Joey. She and I started to fall towards the ground again –

When, as I had hoped, Princess swooped in, grabbing Joey's waist out of thin air. As I was shook about in the movements, I saw Blossom shaking off the effects of the ray. Just as Princess shot off, Blossom took pursuit.

"Get to the observatory!" I yelled at Princess over the wind, pulling out my second blaster again. This meant letting go of the chain connecting me to Joey, but it should be strong enough to support me up, even if it meant bouncing around with every change of direction Princess took.

"No duh, Monkey Boy!" she yelled back, blasting back into the street that let in the direction of my observatory. Noticing that Blossom was getting closer to us, I set both my blasters to stun and fired. She dodged the shots easily, but it meant she lost her gaining speed.

My relief was short-lived, however, as she flung a small rock out of nowhere. It clubbed one of my blasters away, sending it spiraling towards the earth. Before I could comprehend this fully she began charging up a pink energy ball at her mouth. We were in trouble.

"Hurry up!" I said loudly to Princess as we came out of the road into the main area of the park. "Give me your blaster!"

"Alright!" she hollered back. Fumbling briefly, she handed me one of her own blasters, although the passing was delayed as she had to keep a firm grip on Joey while also still flying. I set her blaster up to level 11, as high as it could go. I pointed both it and my remaining blaster at Blossom and fired, at exactly the same moment she released.

There was good news and bad news to this. The good news was that I successfully hit Blossom, knocking her out of the air and into a nearby tree. The bad news was that her energy ball hit its mark on Princess' jetpack, once again reaffixing gravity on us. Thankfully, we were close enough to the observatory that Princess, myself and the unconscious Junior crashed on one of the topmost steps.

Not even noticing that I had lost both my remaining blaster and Princess' one, we both grabbed Joey and hauled her up the last steps. Ordinarily I would have pondered that we hadn't argued at all during this battle, but we both knew that if Joey wasn't revived instantly, that we stood no chance against either Powerpuffs, let alone both.

"Alright," I gasped, as we dragged Joey to the front door. I freed one of my hands on it and started to open it. "Help me get him to the main laboratory. Then go get us some weapons from the storage depot –"

I never got a chance to finish that sentence, though. The door was fully open by that point, and standing right in the frame was Bubbles. And she was truly mad now, her fists clenched.

We didn't even have a chance to do anything. Bubbles lashed out at up with a rapid twin-kick, knocking us off the main landing back down the side of the volcano. Joey and I were still connected together, but Princess was knocked off to a different side.

This time, I didn't even have time to worry about the potential impact. Bubbles flew in and grabbed us, Joey in her left and myself in her right. She also sent a quick twin laser eyes at the chain connecting myself to Joey, incinerating it.

And then she reached the ground, where many police officers were waiting. She tossed me in the back of a nearby police van. The door was shut by two burly male officers.

The van didn't start moving, but I didn't even notice. All that mattered was that we had failed. Joey was captured, and I was carted off to jail. I hadn't been there in about five years. And I just couldn't cope with it. Not just the brutality of the inmates; even the guards were vicious, lashing out with their truncheons and even beating me from time to time.

My thoughts were snapped by the back door being opened again. I saw Blossom tossing in Princess, who was handcuffed. By the time Princess had got back up, the door was shut again. The police van began driving off.

Princess sat opposite me, and lowered her face. Well, it was alright for her; she could get her rich daddy to bail her out easily! Not only did I have no one to bail me out, they wouldn't let me be bailed out. Not when the blame for all the destruction and death pointed primarily at me.

"What do you think they're going to do with Joey?" asked Princess suddenly, snapping me out of my thoughts. That was a very good question, mind.

"I do not know, young one," I simply said, looking away. In truth, I had a few ideas. If Blossom had her own way, they would kill Joey, but Bubbles and the Professor clearly still believed that I had brainwashed her or something. So my best bet was that they would try to find out what was wrong with her and fix it. If so, they would be there for a while, as there was nothing to find. But it could still be almost anything.

"I do not know," I repeated quietly.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the delay getting this chapter up. Not only was I heavily unsure how to go about all the new stuff in this chapter (I'd say this is the first chapter with more new prose then adapted prose), I was heavily sick for about two weeks, meaning I wasn't able to have much time near a computer. I'm hoping you guys are still interested in this, cause my initial interest, which was huge, is waning slightly. Or maybe it's just the lack of time to write this...<br>There was going to be a long chat between Princess and Mojo at the end there, but I felt it would be better to cut off there; also less friendly chat between the two seems more in-character at this stage. Feel free to imagine that conversation if you want, however.  
>I don't know when I can guarantee the next chapter. It'll probably take quite a while, as there's a lot of new stuff again, but after half of it, the next few should be easier, with mostly prose to adapt. The schedule will have to go, but this fic's not on a hiatus yet. Sit tight with me, fellas.<br>**


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